It’s well known that an ICU stay presents several risks to patients, whatever their reason for needing critical care.

  • Various infections are more likely to develop than in other care units.
  • Intense drug therapy can result in adverse drug interactions.
  • The excess stimulation and (often) windowless rooms increase the risk for delirium and its consequences.

Would you do anything to protect your own health if you knew that after surgery you would be spending time in an ICU?

In this month’s Viewpoint column, author Patricia Gavin describes how she coped with her own ICU stay, which she knew in advance would be part of her post-op care:

“…when I realized I would be there for a few days, I decided to create
my own ‘care plan’ to stave off delirium and its adverse outcomes.”

Does it help if the patient knows her own risk factors?

She goes on to explain what she knew about her own risk factors for delirium, and the things she could do to stave off the complication during this stressful time.

And she notes how one nurse made a particular difference in helping her to get through her stay without cognitive complications. Gavin reminds us of the practical strategies that nurses can employ, beginning with, “Extend a conversation beyond ‘What is your full name and date of birth?’”

Interventions firmly rooted in fundamentals of nursing.

None of Gavin’s suggestions involve technical interventions or new concepts; they are firmly rooted in the patient care skills that we learned in our Fundamentals of Nursing courses:

“In the end, it wasn’t medication that calmed me down; it was a caring nurse
who took the time each night to talk me through these dark moments.”

Read this positive and engaging piece, “Preventing Hospital-Induced Delirium in the ICU,” in the September issue of AJN.