This chapter explores the challenges faced by ICU survivors and their families, including the physical and psychological recovery after critical care. It discusses the experiences of a patient who was in an induced coma for three weeks, as well as the shift in relationship dynamics when a spouse becomes a caregiver. The chapter also highlights efforts to improve the physical environment in the ICU and reduce excessive noise and alarms.
It’s a condition which affects some patients who end up in intensive care … and can continue after they’re released from hospital.
People often experience paranoia and fear, sometimes believing doctors are trying to kill them or that ghostly figures have visited during the night.
Disrupted sleep, bright lights, the endless beeping of alarms — all are thought to play a role in bringing on the condition.
On All in the Mind this week, delirium in the ICU – and how our hospital system might be redesigned to reduce it.