Psychological experience of patients 3 months after a stay in the intensive care unit: A descriptive and qualitative study

Purpose: The purpose was to describe psychological experiences of patients 3 months after a stay in the intensive care unit (ICU) using qualitative methods. Methods: Twenty patients underwent clinical interview lasting 1 hour and completed the Impact of Event Scale-Revised and Hospital Anxiety and Depression questionnaires. All interviews were recorded and coded using thematic analysis. Results: All patients (100%) reported that they could not remember their ICU stay; half reported confused memories (50%) or disorientation (50%). Negatives memories were also reported (20%-45%), namely, pain, distress, sleep difficulties, noise, fear, feeling of abandonment; 20% reported positive memories. At 3 months, for 10 (50%) of 20 patients, their ICU experience was characterized by anxiety; 3 (15%) of 20 presented posttraumatic stress disorder; 7 (35%) of 20 reported a feeling of well-being with positive life changes. Well-being seems to be associated with use of coping strategies, such as active coping, positive reframing, optimism, humor, acceptance, leisure activities, and family support. Conclusion: Our study highlights the need to investigate patients' memories of ICU and the coping strategies used by patients to improve their ICU experience. Our findings suggest that a systematic follow-up consultation after ICU discharge would be useful for monitoring of post-ICU psychological outcomes. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.