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Hi, it’s Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com with another quick tip for families in intensive care.

So today, I have an email from Mohammed who asks, “If someone stayed long on the ventilator, should they do a tracheostomy? So, what’s better, staying on a ventilator or doing a tracheostomy?” What a great question. Over the last few weeks, I have made a number of videos or live stream videos even on YouTube. They’ve also gone up on our website either at intensivecareathome.comwhere I break down some of those very important issues.

I’ll just quickly read out what videos I’ve made in the last few weeks. So, one video that I’ve made is, “What is the purpose of a tracheostomy? Another video that I made is, “Is a tracheostomy going to work?” Another video that I made is, “Will a tracheostomy work in the community?”, “Will a tracheostomy and ventilation work in the community?” and so forth.

So, to come back to your question, Mohammed, one thing that I’ve broken down in those videos is simply that the goal for a ventilated patient in ICU with a breathing tube should never be a tracheostomy, that should never be the goal. The goal should always be to get and wean someone off the ventilator with a breathing tube, period. It has no left, right or from that, that should always be the goal.

Now, that cannot always be achieved. If it can’t be achieved, then yes, a tracheostomy is the next best thing. However, even then when a tracheostomy is done, even then, the goal is to wean your loved one off the ventilator and remove the tracheostomy. So, the end goal, one way or another, is always to wean someone off the ventilator, full stop.

Now, if you are concerned that your loved one can’t be weaned off the ventilator and the breathing tube and you can see that a tracheostomy might be the next step, the first question you need to ask is, is the intensive care team doing everything, everything beyond the shadow of a doubt to get your loved one off the ventilator and the breathing tub? We are finding that most of the time, they’re not. They’ve become very complacent knowing that if we can’t get someone off the ventilator and the breathing tube, we can just do a tracheostomy.

So, it’s critically important for you to do your own research, knowing what steps they need to take to take your loved one off the ventilator and the breathing tube and avoid the tracheostomy. I’ve actually made a video about that, “How to wean a critically ill patient off the ventilator and the breathing tube?”, a video that I highly recommend you watch or read the written version of it.

So, it all comes down to that the biggest challenge for families in intensive care is that they don’t know what they don’t know. They don’t know what to look for. They don’t know what questions to ask. They don’t know their rights and they don’t know how to manage doctors and nurses in intensive care, and that’s exactly what you are dealing with here, Mohammed.

It is a step-by-step process they need to follow. They need to wean sedation as quickly as possible, do breathing exercises, wake your loved one up, and so forth. So, I hope that helps. I hope that explains what you should be aiming for.

But the best next step for you is to contact us directly at intensivecarehotline.com. Call us on one of the numbers on the top of our website or simply send us an email to [email protected] with your questions.

Also, have a look at our membership for families in intensive care at intensivecaresupport.org. There, you have access to me and my team, 24 hours a day, in a membership area and via email and we answer all questions, intensive care and Intensive Care at Home related.

I also offer one-to-one consulting and advocacy for families in intensive care. I talk to doctors and nurses directly. I get on a three-way call with you and the doctors, and I ask the questions you haven’t even considered asking. But I have those critical insights after having worked in intensive care for over 20 years in three different countries where I also worked as a nurse unit manager for over 5 years. So, there’s really nothing that escapes me in intensive care. I can fill you on all of the little secrets that you must know when you have a loved one in intensive care.

I also represent you in family meetings with the intensive care team. I make sure that you understand everything that’s being said.  More importantly, I make sure they’re not walking all over you so that you have peace of mind, control, power, influence and so that you can make informed decisions and so that your loved one gets best care and treatment. I offer one-to-one consulting and advocacy over the phone, via Skype, Zoom, Google Meet, WhatsApp, whichever medium works best for you.

We also do medical record reviews in real time. So, if you want a second opinion in real time, I can do that over the phone, but we also review medical records in real time. We also review medical records after intensive care if you have unanswered questions, if you need closure, or if you are simply suspecting medical negligence.

Now, if you find my videos valuable and if you like then click the like button, subscribe to my YouTube channel, click the notification bell, share the video with your friends and families, and comment below what you want to see next or what questions and insights you have from this video.

Thanks for watching.

This is Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com and intensivecareathome.com (33) and I will talk to you in a few days.

Take care for now.

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