Patients’ experience of thirst being conscious and mechanically ventilated in ICU

Because of changes in sedation strategies, more patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) are conscious. Therefore, new and challenging tasks in nursing practice have emerged, which require a focus on the problems that patients experience. Thirst is one such major problem, arising because the mechanical ventilator prevents the patients from drinking when they have the urge to do so. To gain a deeper understanding of the patients' experiences and to contribute new knowledge in nursing care, this study focuses on the patients' experiences of thirst during mechanical ventilation (MV) while being conscious.
Aims
To explore patients' experience of thirst while being conscious and mechanically ventilated.
Design
This hermeneutic study used qualitative interviews of 12 patients.
Method
Data were analyzed based on content analysis. Interviews were conducted between September and October 2014 in two large ICUs in Denmark.
Result
Four themes relating to the patients' experiences of thirst during MV were identified: a paramount thirst, a different sense in the mouth, deprivation of the opportunity to quench thirst and difficulties associated with thirst.