title: Patients' experience of being in intensive care units.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of the study was to describe the Jordanian patients' experience during their stay in intensive care units (ICUs) and to explore factors that contribute to positive and negative experiences.
  
  
  METHODS
  A descriptive, exploratory design was used. The study was conducted at 3 hospitals in Jordan. Patients were selected from surgical and medical ICUs within 72 hours after transfer to the floor. Data were collected through structured interviews using the Intensive Care Experience Questionnaire with 98 patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Data showed high level of awareness among patients to surrounding persons (82.2%) and relatives (90.3%). Although 58% of patients perceived pain as a problem during their stay, patients' perception of the care as good as it should be was generally high (82%). Male and female patients differed significantly in their frightening experiences (t=-2.559, P=.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Understanding patients' experiences in the ICU would increase nurses' awareness to patients' stressors. It would help policy makers in designing structural and process-related care activities in a manner that promotes positive patient experiences, which would improve quality of care in general and specifically ICU patients' outcome. The ICU environment was found to adversely affect patients in many aspects. In addition, most patients were able to recall their ICU experience.
authors: Clinical Nursing Department, Faculty of Nursing, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942 Jordan. Electronic address: jalasad@ju.edu.jo.
authors: Jafar A
authors: JA
authors: Alasad
authors: College of Nursing, King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, National Guard Health Affairs, P.O. Box 3660, Riyadh 11426. Electronic address: tabarn@Ksau-hs.edu.sa.
authors: Nazih
authors: N
authors: Abu Tabar
authors: Clinical Nursing Dept., Faculty of Nursing, The University of Jordan. Electronic address: mma4@ju.edu.jo.
authors: Muayyad M
authors: MM
authors: Ahmad
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001364:Awareness; D003422:Critical Care / Q000523:psychology*; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D007597:Jordan; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D059408:Pain Management / Q000523:psychology; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010465:Perception; D012737:Sex Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Intensive care experience; Jordan