Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Foreword
- Abbreviations
- SECTION 1 Admission to Critical Care
- SECTION 2 General Considerations in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 3 System Management in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 4 Procedure-Specific Care in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 5 Discharge and Follow-up From Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 6 Structure and Organisation in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 7 Ethics, Legal Issues and Research in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- 69 Patient's perspective
- 70 Ethical management
- 71 Medicolegal issues
- 72 Research
- Appendix Works Cited
- Index
69 - Patient's perspective
from SECTION 7 - Ethics, Legal Issues and Research in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 July 2014
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Foreword
- Abbreviations
- SECTION 1 Admission to Critical Care
- SECTION 2 General Considerations in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 3 System Management in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 4 Procedure-Specific Care in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 5 Discharge and Follow-up From Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 6 Structure and Organisation in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 7 Ethics, Legal Issues and Research in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- 69 Patient's perspective
- 70 Ethical management
- 71 Medicolegal issues
- 72 Research
- Appendix Works Cited
- Index
Summary
Introduction
This chapter presents a frank and personal story of a consultant in cardiac anaesthesia and intensive care, who became a patient in his own critical care unit.
Preoperatively
While cutting an already fallen tree, a heavy branch crashed down on my left shoulder, crushing my back and leading to an unstable fracture of the 12th thoracic vertebra. The next day, I found myself in orthopaedic theatres in my own institution undergoing urgent spinal stabilization. A haemangioma identified at the fracture site meant that a further thoracoabdominal procedure was required through a left thoracotomy and laparotomy, with the eighth rib used to replace the body of fractured T12.
Preoperative concerns
Loss of dignity and control
Had I been asked before the accident, I would have preferred admission if required to any critical care unit other than the one in which I worked, due to a sense of embarrassment at loss of privacy before my colleagues. Nevertheless, faced with the harsh reality of making such a decision, I opted for my own unit where I knew the nurses and doctors so well. Knowing that I was not going to be there as a stranger was reassuring.
Concerns regarding my loved ones
I was worried about my elderly parents coming in and out of the critical care unit and arranged in advance for a family friend to accompany them. I later discovered that this is a significant concern, experienced by 71% of patients.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Core Topics in Cardiothoracic Critical Care , pp. 493 - 497Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2008