By Sylvia Foley, AJN senior editor

Photo by Lanny Nagler, courtesy of Hartford Hospital

For many people, “going to hospital is rather like going to an alien planet,” as the British cartoonist and book illustrator Sir Quentin Blake once observed—it’s a very stressful experience taking place in an unfamiliar environment. For some, the experience of hospitalization can trigger or worsen agitation. In the October CE “Decreasing Patient Agitation Using Individualized Therapeutic Activities,” author Christine Waszynski and colleagues report on a nurse-led quality improvement project that demonstrated promising results. Here’s a short summary.

OVERVIEW: Hospitalized patients who are suffering from cognitive impairment, delirium, suicidal ideation, traumatic brain injury, or another behavior-altering condition are often placed under continuous observa­tion by designated “sitters.” These patients may become agitated, which can jeopardize their safety even when a sitter is present. This quality improvement project was based on the hypothesis that agitation can be decreased by engaging these patients in individualized therapeutic activities. The authors created a tool that allowed continuous observers to identify a patient’s abilities and interests, and then offer such activities to the patient. Data were collected using a scale that measured patient agitation before, during, and after these activities. The authors found that during the activities, 73% of patients had decreased levels of agitation compared with baseline, and 64% remained less agitated for at least one hour afterward.

The intervention appeared effective in reducing levels of […]

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