In today’s blog post I want to start a discussion about the Quality of Life in Intensive Care for long- term mechanically ventilated Adults& Children with Tracheostomy and their Families.
Everybody who is familiar with Intensive Care has seen medically stable, long term ventilated Adults and/or Children staying in Intensive Care for far too long. Usually Patients and their Families in this situation are depressed and Intensive care Units struggle to provide the Quality of Life that the Patients, as well as their Families really need. More often than not, the only reason those Adults& Children stay in Intensive Care is the ventilator dependency with Tracheostomy, as they are otherwise medically stable.
Families of those Adults& Children dependent on mechanical ventilation with Tracheostomy have little Quality of Life as well and more often than not, they have to put their life on hold. They are spending too much time in Intensive Care. They don’t eat, they don’t sleep, they may have put their professional lives on hold, their children, their parents and other important areas of their life are neglected.
What do you think as being an expert in ICU? What’s the solution to this dilemma? Leave a comment below and start sharing your opinion!
Thanks
Patrik