Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation

Purpose Intensive care patients often struggle to communicate due to the technical equipment used for mechanical ventilation and their critical illness. The aim of the study was to achieve a deeper understanding of how mechanically ventilated intensive care patients construct meaning in the unpredic...

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Main Authors: Marte-Marie Wallander Karlsen, Lena Günterberg Heyn, Kristin Heggdal
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2024-12-01
Series:International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2024.2322174
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author Marte-Marie Wallander Karlsen
Lena Günterberg Heyn
Kristin Heggdal
author_facet Marte-Marie Wallander Karlsen
Lena Günterberg Heyn
Kristin Heggdal
author_sort Marte-Marie Wallander Karlsen
collection DOAJ
description Purpose Intensive care patients often struggle to communicate due to the technical equipment used for mechanical ventilation and their critical illness. The aim of the study was to achieve a deeper understanding of how mechanically ventilated intensive care patients construct meaning in the unpredictable trajectory of critical illness. Methods The study was a part of a larger study in which ten patients were video recorded while being in the intensive care. Five patients engaged in interviews about their experiences from the intensive care stay after being discharged and were offered the possibility to see themselves in the video recordings. A narrative, thematic analysis was applied to categorize the patients’ experiences from the intensive care. Results A pattern of shared experiences among intensive care patients were identified. Three main themes capture the patient’s experiences: 1) perceiving the intensive care stay as a life-changing turning point, 2) being dependent on and cared for by others, and 3) living with negative and positive ICU experiences. Conclusion The patients’ narratives revealed how being critically ill affected them, and how they understood their experiences in relation to themselves and their surroundings. The results can be used to pose important questions about our current clinical practice.
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spelling doaj-art-bf74f355be3643abb479e4faa7bebe812025-08-20T01:55:38ZengTaylor & Francis GroupInternational Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being1748-26231748-26312024-12-0119110.1080/17482631.2024.23221742322174Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilationMarte-Marie Wallander Karlsen0Lena Günterberg Heyn1Kristin Heggdal2Lovisenberg Diaconal University CollegeUniversity of South-Eastern NorwayVID Specialized UniversityPurpose Intensive care patients often struggle to communicate due to the technical equipment used for mechanical ventilation and their critical illness. The aim of the study was to achieve a deeper understanding of how mechanically ventilated intensive care patients construct meaning in the unpredictable trajectory of critical illness. Methods The study was a part of a larger study in which ten patients were video recorded while being in the intensive care. Five patients engaged in interviews about their experiences from the intensive care stay after being discharged and were offered the possibility to see themselves in the video recordings. A narrative, thematic analysis was applied to categorize the patients’ experiences from the intensive care. Results A pattern of shared experiences among intensive care patients were identified. Three main themes capture the patient’s experiences: 1) perceiving the intensive care stay as a life-changing turning point, 2) being dependent on and cared for by others, and 3) living with negative and positive ICU experiences. Conclusion The patients’ narratives revealed how being critically ill affected them, and how they understood their experiences in relation to themselves and their surroundings. The results can be used to pose important questions about our current clinical practice.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2024.2322174intensive care patientnarrativesnarrative methodpatient experiencesqualitative research
spellingShingle Marte-Marie Wallander Karlsen
Lena Günterberg Heyn
Kristin Heggdal
Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation
International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health & Well-Being
intensive care patient
narratives
narrative method
patient experiences
qualitative research
title Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation
title_full Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation
title_fullStr Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation
title_full_unstemmed Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation
title_short Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation
title_sort being a patient in the intensive care unit a narrative approach to understanding patients experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation
topic intensive care patient
narratives
narrative method
patient experiences
qualitative research
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2024.2322174
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