Open evening provides follow-up care for Intensive Care Unit patients

25 March, 2004

An Open Evening for people who have been patients on West Suffolk Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit was held yesterday evening (24/3/04) in the Education Centre. The Evening was held as part of a ‘follow-up’ programme to care for patients after they are well enough to leave the unit.

The follow-up programme – the first in the east of England - was set up in 2001 in response to research which shows that patients can suffer profound problems after critical care, especially if their stay is for 4 days or longer. These problems may remain unrecognised by patients, their relatives and health care professionals, and so get worse until they become chronic.

“We are very pleased with the way in which the Open Evening went,” said Denise Stubbs, follow-up sister. “We decided to hold the event because patients at our follow-up clinic had told us they would benefit from talking to others who had gone through similar experiences.

“It was well-attended, with 12 ex-patients of the Intensive Care Unit and their relatives turning up on the night. We got a lot of feedback from these people about their experiences on ICU and any problems they had after discharge. This is valuable to us as clinicians, as we can use the patient’s perspective to improve our practice.”

Physical difficulties experienced after discharge from intensive care can include fatigue, itching, eating or sleeping problems, or drug dependence. Psychologically, patients can experience depression, panic attacks, post-traumatic stress disorder, disturbing memories, nightmares, flashbacks and hallucinations. They can also encounter social problems such as altered family dynamics, differing expectations of relatives and sexual dysfunction.

 “We are proud of the care we provide to patients post-discharge,” said Pam Chrispin, Director of Intensive Care. “We have an innovative programme in place to ensure that patients get full professional support to help enable them to deal with any problems they might have.

“The Open Evening helped add to this package of support by enabling people to informally talk through issues they have in common. It was also hugely beneficial for staff to see patients in good health after being critically ill.”