Evaluation of the psychological status of patients during and after weaning from mechanical ventilation

Abstract

Background Care for mechanically ventilated patients must incorporate psychological care. Aim The aim of the study was to evaluate the overall satisfaction of ICU survivors who needed mechanical ventilation (MV) with their ICU stay including the assessment of different psychological changes. Patients and methods One hundred mechanically ventilated patients (32 medical and 68 surgical) were interviewed after extubation. Results Medical patients were older than surgical patients (57.44 ± 13.27 vs. 48.69 ± 14.74 years, P = 0.005), had more days on MV (5.8 ± 4 vs. 2.6 ± 3.7 days, P = 0.0001), had a positive history of previous MV (18.8 vs. 0%, P = 0.001), and had more weaning trials ( P = 0.0001). Items that were bothersome for patients included noise (97%), poor communication with nurses (98%), poor performance of nurses and doctors (22 and 20%, respectively), nursing shift changeover (26%), being connected and ventilated by a machine (100%), discomfort because of endotracheal tube (100%), tracheal suctioning by endotracheal tube (76%), Ryle feeding (75%), being hungry and thirsty (92 and 93%, respectively), insomnia (98%), not getting enough sleep (34%), not being able to talk (99%), lack of social communication (100%), immobilization (100%), pain (99%), loss of time orientation (83%), feelings of fearful (97%), loneliness (96%), bored (95%), hallucinations (17%), depressed (97%), neglected (66%), isolated (95%), insecurity (74%), lack of self-confidence (91%), not accepting the situation (98%), and postextubation complications including voice problems (34%), difficulty swallowing (9%), and movement problems (27%). Duration of MV correlated significantly with hallucinations ( P = 0.0001) and feeling neglected ( P = 0.019). Conclusion ICU experiences were mostly negative.