Ambulation of patients who are mechanically ventilated: nurses’ views
Intended for healthcare professionals
Evidence & Practice Previous    

Ambulation of patients who are mechanically ventilated: nurses’ views

Lee Curtis Senior lecturer, Buckinghamshire New University, Uxbridge, England
Julie Irwin Academic enhancement manager, Buckinghamshire New University, Uxbridge, England
Aims

Equipment and skills in intensive care have advanced dramatically, and early rehabilitation and ambulation for patients in intensive care units (ICUs) are part of their journey to recovery. The aim of this study is to understand better nurses' perspectives on ambulating mechanically ventilated patients, and to determine why this is not a routine part of ICU patient care.

Method

Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to extract data from semi-structured interviews. The questions were piloted twice before being used in the main study.

Results

Results identified two overarching themes, staff anxiety and organisational culture, within which there are several subthemes. The study also found that education and training programmes could increase staff confidence and consequently result in routine ambulation of mechanically ventilated patients.

Conclusion

The study identified that nursing staff are aware of the benefits of ambulation for patients in ICUs, but the personal satisfaction gained from undertaking this activity does not outweigh the anxiety it causes. This is compounded by the organisational culture of ICUs; for example, the hierarchical pyramid of leadership, which dictates that consultants decide when patients are ready to ambulate.

Nursing Management. 24, 4, 34-39. doi: 10.7748/nm.2017.e1599

Correspondence

lee.curtis@bucks.ac.uk

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

Conflict of interest

None declared

Received: 08 November 2016

Accepted: 21 March 2017

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