Resumen

BELTRAN-SALAZAR, Óscar Alberto. The Experience of Being Hospitalized in an Intensive Care Unit. Aquichan [online]. 2009, vol.9, n.1, pp.27-37. ISSN 1657-5997.

Objective: Describe what hospitalization in an intensive care unit (ICU) means to critically ill patients. Method: This is a research project with a phenomenological approach. It includes nine adults between the ages of 24 and 80 who were critically ill and hospitalized in an intensive care unit. Information was collected through in-depth interviews and analyzed pursuant to the scheme proposed by Cohen, Kahan and Steeves. The study was conducted in Medellín, Colombia, between April and October 2006. Results: The study made ¡t possible to describe the "harshness" of the experience and the difficulties that emerged during the ¡llness, as well as the physical and psychological suffering and some of the conditions that contributed to suffering. Discussion: The experience of having a critical ¡llness and being hospitalized ¡n an ICU ¡s harsh, given the suffering occasioned by the effects of the ¡llness, the elements used ¡n treatment, and the procedures conducted to resolve the ¡llness. Conclusión: The manifestations of an ¡llness ¡n the organism and ¡n the person, medical and surgical interventions, and nursing procedures can cause suffering that contributes to the harshness of the experience of being critically ¡II.

Palabras clave : Intensive care; pain; basic nursing care; critical care.

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