Leaving Intensive care Non-stressfully and Collaboratively
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Philosophy
To offer a continuum of care and high standard of service from Intensive Care to the Wards by working as an efficient team with a planned discharge program, coordinating a variety of health and social care managers to:
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This project aims to help
patients, relatives and staff in the process of discharge from ICU to the ward
by developing a program which will give the information and support to all the
people concerned. The project aims to evaluate the problems that already exist
and introduce a new program called Transitional Family Care (TFC). There will be
a further evaluation of this program to see if it improves the discharge process
from ICU.
To highlight the problems that exists with the discharge process from ICU a questionnaire to patients and staff will be used. This questionnaire will rate the patient and staff satisfaction levels.
The TFC program will include a
letter to the patient or relative and a subsequent conference to
explain a range
of issues in the care of the patient. The conference will deal with any problems
that may develop and gives the opportunity for queries to be answered and
information to be exchanged. The conference will include a doctor, nurse,
physiotherapist, relative/s, ward staff and social worker if required. The
patient will have been in the unit 4 days or more and hopefully the early
planning for discharge will reduces the stress and uncertainty often felt.
The follow-up to the ward by the ICU nurse will help reduce the stress for the patient and staff and improve the support and communication between departments.
It is also hoped to produce a booklet that will give important information to the patient and relative reinforcing the information given by the staff and reducing the fears of the patient by improving his/her knowledge.
To evaluate the success of the program the questionnaire will be used again to help assess the changes the program has made and the possible improvement to patient and staff satisfaction.
