The objective of this essay is to discuss with reference to published literature “ICU diaries are frequently promoted as being beneficial for the patients’ psychological recovery from critical illness”.
Intensive care unit (ICU) is an environment where often the most fragile patients are, and where they receive treatment. During their sometimes prolonged stay in ICU, patients often experience strong physical and psychological stress, including critical life threatening illness, terror, lack of privacy, noises, pain, sedation, sleep deprivation, delirium and the unnatural ICU environment (Ullman and all, 2014). These experiences impact on a patient’s recovery from critical illness and may result in both physical and psychological disorders (Ullman …show more content…
Diaries written for patients admitted in ICU have been used in some European countries since the 1990s to support patients and their relatives in their understanding of the ICU experience (Nydahl and Egerod, 2015). According to Heindl and all (2016) In Denmark, 19 out of 48 ICUs used ICU diaries in 2006, in Sweden 65 of 85 and in Norway 31 of 70. In similar investigations, 43 of 221 questioned ICU nurses from Germany and 37 of 194 questioned ICU nurses from Australia stated that they were using ICU diaries.
The rationale for the use of patient’s diaries in ICU is that ICU survivors have little memories and frequently delirious memories from their ICU stay. The experienced memory gap is associated with an increased risk of psychological morbidity. The aim of the ICU diaries is to help fill this memory gap. ICU patient diaries are an historical and chronologic account of events in ICU from the perception of those who complete them, usually nursing staff and family members (Ewens, Hendricks and Sundin, …show more content…
Many authors have different positions about ICU diaries, because the way to construct them is very different from ICU to ICU and from a country to another. Although that diary is starting to be used widely, it is occurring without previous planning and consensus. It is needed to ensure an appropriated structure for the diary to allow it to become consistent. (Phillips, 2011)
Some use scientific language, others are written in a way the patient understands, some resemble a clinical diary and only the multi-disciplinary team can complete them, others they are completed by family and friends. Some units use them for general patients others only per request. Ewens, Hendricks and Sundin (2015) have written that ICU diaries are a cost effective intervention that has shown potential in the reduction of psychological morbidity during post ICU recovery period for the patient and their
Intensive care unit (ICU) is an environment where often the most fragile patients are, and where they receive treatment. During their sometimes prolonged stay in ICU, patients often experience strong physical and psychological stress, including critical life threatening illness, terror, lack of privacy, noises, pain, sedation, sleep deprivation, delirium and the unnatural ICU environment (Ullman and all, 2014). These experiences impact on a patient’s recovery from critical illness and may result in both physical and psychological disorders (Ullman …show more content…
Diaries written for patients admitted in ICU have been used in some European countries since the 1990s to support patients and their relatives in their understanding of the ICU experience (Nydahl and Egerod, 2015). According to Heindl and all (2016) In Denmark, 19 out of 48 ICUs used ICU diaries in 2006, in Sweden 65 of 85 and in Norway 31 of 70. In similar investigations, 43 of 221 questioned ICU nurses from Germany and 37 of 194 questioned ICU nurses from Australia stated that they were using ICU diaries.
The rationale for the use of patient’s diaries in ICU is that ICU survivors have little memories and frequently delirious memories from their ICU stay. The experienced memory gap is associated with an increased risk of psychological morbidity. The aim of the ICU diaries is to help fill this memory gap. ICU patient diaries are an historical and chronologic account of events in ICU from the perception of those who complete them, usually nursing staff and family members (Ewens, Hendricks and Sundin, …show more content…
Many authors have different positions about ICU diaries, because the way to construct them is very different from ICU to ICU and from a country to another. Although that diary is starting to be used widely, it is occurring without previous planning and consensus. It is needed to ensure an appropriated structure for the diary to allow it to become consistent. (Phillips, 2011)
Some use scientific language, others are written in a way the patient understands, some resemble a clinical diary and only the multi-disciplinary team can complete them, others they are completed by family and friends. Some units use them for general patients others only per request. Ewens, Hendricks and Sundin (2015) have written that ICU diaries are a cost effective intervention that has shown potential in the reduction of psychological morbidity during post ICU recovery period for the patient and their