Protecting Personhood: A Classic Grounded Theory.

The importance of perceiving and considering patients as healthcare partners has been increasingly promoted. Healthcare systems around the world are now highly interested in patient engagement, participation, collaboration, and partnership. Healthcare professionals are advised that patients, as autonomous beings, should be active in and responsible for a portion of their own care. The study presented here focused on patients' perceptions of interprofessional collaboration. It was conducted using the classic grounded theory methodology. The theory of protecting personhood emerged as the core concept of hospitalized patients, cared for by interprofessional healthcare teams. This theory encapsulates the process hospitalized patients go through to find balance in their sense of self, oscillating between personhood and patienthood in the unfamiliar hospital environment. The process consists of four stages: the stage of introspection, during which hospitalized patients become aware of their self as a person and as a patient; the stage of preservation, when patients find a balance between the sense of personhood and patienthood; the stage of rupture, wherein patients experience an imbalance between their sense of personhood and patienthood; and the stage of reconciliation, in which personhood is restored. The theory of protecting personhood offers insights into a better understanding of hospitalized patients' experiences and strategies, revealing the importance of relationships, and the driving force of empowerment. This study is about patients' perspectives of interprofessional healthcare teams. A grounded theory process allowed the emergence of patients' concerns and expectations, leading to a substantive theory grounded in the patients' data.

Development and validation of a multivariable risk score for prolonged length of stay in the surgical intensive care unit.

BACKGROUND: Chronically critical illness is highly relevant in intensive care units, but the definitions in literature vary greatly. The timely detection of prolonged intensive care unit length of stay could support care planning for chronically critical ill patients. AIM: To develop and validate a risk score for predicting prolonged length of stay in the surgical intensive care unit. METHODS: This single centre cohort study formed part of a nursing-led project in one surgical intensive care unit. We examined the performance of seven predefined predictive factors of prolonged (>20 days) intensive care unit length of stay in adults on the seventh day of stay in intensive care to develop (n = 304) and validate (n = 101) a risk score. Candidate variables (Charlson Comorbidity Index, Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, minimum plasma albumin, need for anti-infective drugs, time of mechanical ventilation, main feeding method and score on the Sedation-Agitation Scale) were analysed using multiple logistical regression analysis. RESULTS: Our risk score assigned different points to the following conditions: Charlson Comorbidity Index >2, minimum albumin <20 g/l between days 1 and 7, mechanical ventilation >14 hr on day 7 and the need for parenteral nutrition on day 7. For a validation data set (n = 101), the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.89 (95% confidence interval 0.77­0.87). At a cut-off value of 100 points, the degree of sensitivity was 88%, the specificity 75%, the positive predictive value 53%, the negative predictive value 95%, and the model fit R2 0.40. CONCLUSIONS: Our model allowed the timely detection of prolonged intensive care unit length of stay with four candidate predictive factors. The timely identification of patients with prolonged intensive care unit length of stay is possible and could influence the person-centred prevention of chronically critical illness and adequate resource allocation. (Trial registration no DRKS 00017073)