Intensive care environment: Perspective of relatives of critically ill patient sustained by health technology

Abstract

The intensive care unit (ICU) is a complex setting by nature, and some have described it as bizarre due to its numerous sirens that sound when anything is dangerous, constant activity, equipment, bright lights, and high fatality rate. The demands placed on nurses to care for critically ill patients in this environment frequently prevent nurses and other health-care professionals from acknowledging the feelings of patient's relatives or family caregivers, resulting in a hostile environment from the patient's relative's perspective. When a patient's family enters the ICU, they feel that hospital administrators do little to nothing to alleviate their discomfort and fear. Despite research demonstrating the importance of providing a homely environment for patients' families, In Nigeria ICU is still far behind how a conventional ICU environment should be structured to accommodate patient's relations in the unit. The goal of this study was to look at the patient's relative's perspective on providing care for a critically ill patient in an ICU, with a focus on the unit's complexity and overall experience. Based on the findings of this study, we recommend that hospital administrators ensure that the environment of the upcoming ICU is designed to meet the needs of patient's relatives by addressing identified environmental concerns, like caring neglect, by providing a friendly and stress-free environment.