Patient-reported outcomes are an invaluable tool to provide patients’ perceptions of quality of care. Measurement of sedation and agitation has traditionally been done with clinician-determined sedation assessments. Although a new sedation index is a significant predictor of various outcomes, the relationship between patient-reported outcomes and clinician-determined assessments is not known.
Malinowski and colleagues interviewed patients 24 to 96 hours after cessation of sedation to determine the usefulness of sedation and agitation indexes. They found that
The agitation index was significantly correlated with several patient-related outcomes, including difficulty sleeping, inability to talk, and amount of noise. The authors suggest future clinical use of the index as a descriptor of the patient’s experience.
See Article, pp 140-144
It is well known that delirium can be a complication for patients receiving mechanical ventilation. Many also experience pain, anxiety, and physiological stress that require medication therapy, which may further increase the risk for delirium....
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