This chapter focuses on the experiences of patients in the ICU and the impact of delirium on their lives, discussing efforts to improve sleep and challenges faced by healthcare professionals in managing delirium.
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.