Abstract
This study aimed to investigate nurses' perceptions of and clinical nursing for psychological problems of patients discharged from the ICU.
Involving 36 nurses who participated in Intercommunication Session 3 during the 10th Annual Meeting of Japan Academy of Critical Care Nursing, a focus group interview of 4 groups was conducted to investigate nurses' perceptions of and clinical nursing for memory distortions of patients discharged from the ICU. The obtained data were analyzed using a qualitative descriptive analysis. As the results, the following categories were extracted: 3 categories including "patients with marked anxiety are likely to have distorted memories" as [factors for memory distortion], 4 categories including "memory distortion can occur in patients with delirium or even those with clear consciousness" and "memory loss of patients treated in the ICU may serve as a defense mechanism" as [relationships between memory distortion and events occurring in the ICU], and 4 categories including "difficulties providing timely care for patients with distorted memory" as [coping measures by nurses for patients with distorted memory]. It is necessary to examine practical measures to provide care for such patients in the future.
