Intensive and Critical Care Nursing
Volume 23, Issue 4 , Pages 196-205, August 2007

Intensive care nurses’ perceptions of protocol-directed weaning—A qualitative study

  • Britt Sætre Hansen

      Affiliations

    • University of Stavanger, Norway
    • Acute Clinic of Intensive Care, Stavanger University Hospital, Box 8100, N-4068 Stavanger, Norway
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author at: Kong Haraldsgate 49, N-4041 Hafsfjord, Norway. Tel.: +47 51519138; fax: +47 51519932.
    • ,
  • Elisabeth Severinsson

      Affiliations

    • Department of Health Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Stavanger, N-4036 Stavanger, Norway
    • University Hospital of Stavanger, Box 8100, N-4068 Stavanger, Norway
    • This study was developed when I was a visiting professor at the Centre for Midwifery, Child & Family Health, Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Health, University of Technology Sydney, PO Box 123, Broadway NSW 2007, Australia.

Accepted 4 March 2007.

Summary 

The aim of this study was to identify intensive care nurses’ perceptions of protocol-directed weaning, by means of focus group interviews and qualitative content analysis.

The results showed that the nurses perceived the protocol as useful. When prescribed, it represented interprofessional agreement that allowed them to act in the absence of a physician. It focused on weaning, saved time, was easy to use and led to a feeling of safety and continuity in the weaning process. Barriers to its use were related to lack of instructions from physicians. Nurses reported three ways of handling the situation in the absence of a weaning plan: taking action, waiting, and giving weaning low priority, which could lead to undesired variations. Nurses in this study reported that they would like an interdisciplinary approach to weaning and expressed the need for a shared “language” or knowledge base in order to improve communication. It is important that different disciplines meet to share each other's knowledge. Contact is vital in order to learn about and respect different types of professional knowledge.

Keywords: Collaboration, Communication, Interdisciplinary, Intensive care nurses, Protocol-directed weaning

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PII: S0964-3397(07)00021-3

doi:10.1016/j.iccn.2007.03.001

Intensive and Critical Care Nursing
Volume 23, Issue 4 , Pages 196-205, August 2007

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