Mute patients

Currently being on placement where the majority of your patients are intubated and unable to communicate with you or the outside world, alerts me to the tendency to look at their “numbers” (aka ABGs, UO, ventilation settings) and easily forget patients names and details due to the lack of interaction you have with them. It was a realisation that I had when my supervisor, another student and I were talking over the patient about clinical based questions that I remember that the patient beneath could actually understand/comprehend everything we were saying. With this is mind, I recognised that it was important to still be considerate to the patient in terms of not only introducing yourself, but to still explain what you were going to do with them and the rationale behind it. Despite the fact that they won’t respond or reply to you (they may slightly during treatment), we are unaware as to what mental state they are in. A positive thing that has come out of this placement is the interaction between allied health members. Before and after treating the patient there is the enjoyable task of close liaison opportunities with the nursing staff which you don’t get on other placements. Since noticing, I have made it a focal part of treatment to talk and explain throughout the treatment about what’s happening and continue to thank them at the end of the session which I would if the patient were responsive.