Being a patient in the intensive care unit: a narrative approach to understanding patients’ experiences of being awake and on mechanical ventilation

Figures & data

Table I. Patient demographics.

Age	Gender	Days on mechanical ventilation*	Place for interview	Duration interview (minutes)	Watched segments of video recordings
Median: 60 (range 43–72)	3 male 4 female	Mean: 21 (Range 15–30)	3 hospital 2 home	Median: 45 (Range 18–104)	Yes: 3 No: 2

*This refers to the days on mechanical ventilation at the time of the video recording.

Table II. Comparative analysis of patients’ experiences with uncomfortable symptoms.

Patients	Ragnar	Anders	Lisa
Plot summary	Living with uncomfortable symptoms	Living with uncomfortable symptoms	Living with uncomfortable symptoms
Introduction	Experiences of multiple bothersome symptoms, especially headaches, during the ICU stay	Experiences of uncomfortable symptoms, such as nausea and discomfort in the throat, during the ICU stay	Experiences of uncomfortable symptoms due to treatment in the ICU
Problem/Conflict	Normal daily procedures were painful.	Sometimes, the symptoms were so uncomfortable that the patient threw up and could not endure being awake.	The enteral tube hurt, and the patient wanted it removed.
Climax/action	Relatives said that what was being done to the patient looked uncomfortable and that he never had migraines or headaches before that time.	The intensivist decided to sedate the patient and said good night.	The patient received sleeping medication so that she could endure the discomfort and relax during the night.
Resolution	Being acknowledged and seen in uncomfortable situations	Sedation and analgesia when the discomfort was too much to endure	Sedation and analgesia
Characters/time/setting	The patient, health care professionals, and relatives in different settings	The patient and a female intensivist	The patient; health care professionals; and the patient’s husband, who witnessed her discomfort
Coda	Suffering during the ICU stay	Bothersome symptoms	Suffering during the ICU stay

Figure 1. Themes and subthemes.