Because Mrs. Johanna J. was so confused, she had great difficulty classifying the situation in the intensive care unit.

Mme Johanna J. était si confuse qu'elle a eu beaucoup de mal à appréhender la situation dans l'unité de soins intensifs.

I : Parlez-moi de vos rêves. Comment c'était ?


E : C'était très probablement des choses que j'ai entendues de ma famille. A partir de là, j'ai simplement créé ma propre histoire. Par exemple : Ils ont parlé de (lieu_1 ) et ont dit qu'ils auraient voulu m'emmener en avion à l'établissement de santé (lieu_3). La Rega (Garde aérienne suisse de sauvetage) était un des sujet. Puis quelqu'un m'a dit qu'il y avait eu un accident de voiture ou quelque chose du genre à Migrolino (fournisseur suisse de magasins de proximité). Puis j'ai rêvé que j'étais allongée en bas dans le Migrolino. Le lit d'hôpital était en bas. La Rega faisait le plein en bas et m'attendait. Puis ils m'ont mise dans la Rega. Et puis l'hélicoptère s'est en quelque sorte planté, enfin, l'électronique s'est éteinte pendant un moment. Il n'y avait pas de lumière. Puis ils ont pu le redémarrer. Puis ils m'ont conduit à la maison de retraite de (lieu_2). Comme, toujours après (le lieu 2). Alors, j'étais à (lieu_2) dans une maison de retraite. J'étais juste allongée comme ça dans un couloir (hall). Ils n'avaient pas de lit libre. C'était juste dans le couloir. Ensuite, j'ai eu de gros problèmes avec mes poumons et je voulais le dire au médecin, mais je ne pouvais pas communiquer. Il ne m'a pas compris. Je voulais lui dire que j'avais une sorte de vache sur mes poumons. Pour une raison quelconque, une vache. Je ne sais pas. Mais c'était toujours le même docteur, bizarrement.

Mme Johanna J. était entre rêves et confusion.

Poiché la signora Johanna J. era così confusa, ha avuto grandi difficoltà a classificare la situazione nel reparto di terapia intensiva.

I: Parlami dei sogni. Com'erano?


E: Molto probabilmente erano cose che ho sentito dalla mia famiglia. Da cui poi ho semplicemente creato la mia storia. Per esempio: Hanno parlato di (luogo_1 ) e che avrebbero voluto portarmi all'istituto di cura (luogo_3). La Rega (Guardia aerea svizzera di soccorso) era un argomento. Poi qualcuno mi ha detto che c'era stato un incidente d'auto o qualcosa del genere a  (negozio svizzero). Poi ho sognato che ero sdraiato al piano di sotto del (negozio svizzero). Il letto d'ospedale era laggiù. La Rega stava facendo rifornimento laggiù e mi stava aspettando. Poi mi hanno messo nella Rega. E poi l'elicottero si è come bloccato, beh, l'elettronica si è bloccata per un momento. Non c'era luce. Poi sono stati in grado di farlo ripartire. Poi mi hanno portato alla casa di riposo di (luogo_2). Tipo, al luogo_2. Poi mi trovavo a luogo_2. Ero sdraiato così in un corridoio. Non avevano un letto libero. Era solo nel corridoio. Poi ho avuto tanti problemi con i miei polmoni e continuavo a volerlo dire al medico, ma non riuscivo a comunicare. Non mi ha capito. Volevo dirgli che avevo una specie di mucca sui polmoni. Per qualsiasi motivo una mucca. Non lo so. Ma, stranamente, era sempre lo stesso dottore.

La signora Johanna J. era tra i sogni e la confusione.

Weil Frau Johanna J. so verwirrt war, hatte sie grosse  Schwierigkeiten, die Situation auf der Intensivstation einzuorden.

I: Erzählen Sie mir von den Träumen. Wie war das?


E: Das waren sehr wahrscheinlich Sachen, die ich von meiner Familie gehört habe. Aus denen ich dann einfach meine eigene Geschichte gemacht habe. Zum Beispiel: Sie haben von (Ort_1 ) gesprochen, und dass sie mich in die Gesundheitsinstitution (Ort_3) hätten fliegen wollen. Die Rega (Schweizerische Rettungsflugwacht) war ein Thema. Dann hat irgendjemand erzählt, dass es im Migrolino (Schweizer Anbieter im Convenience-Shop-Bereich) ein Autounfall oder so etwas gegeben hat. Dann habe ich geträumt, dass ich unten im Migrolino liege. Dort unten war das Krankenbett. Die Rega hat dort unten aufgetankt und wartete auf mich. Dann haben sie mich in die Rega reingepackt. Und dann stürzte der Helikopter irgendwie ab,  also, die Elektronik ist ein Augenblick abgestürzt. Es gab kein Licht. Dann konnten sie es wieder aufstarten. Dann haben sie mich ins Pflegeheim nach (Ort_2) gefahren. Wie so auch immer nach Ort_2. Dann war ich dort draussen in Ort_2 in einem Pflegeheim. Ich lag einfach so in einem Gang (Flur). Sie hatten kein freies Bett. Es war einfach im Gang drin. Dann hatte ich so Probleme mit der Lunge und ich wollte das dem Arzt immer wieder sagen und habe mich jedoch nicht mitteilen können. Er hat mich nicht verstanden. Ich wollte ihm sagen, dass ich irgendetwas von einer Kuh auf der Lunge habe. Warum auch immer eine Kuh. Keine Ahnung. Aber es war lustigerweise immer der gleiche Arzt.

Frau Johanna J. war zwischen Träumen und Verwirrung.

I: Tell me about the dreams. What were they like?

E: They were very likely things that I heard from my family. From which I then just made my own story. For example: they were talking about (place_1 ), and that they would have wanted to fly me to the health institution (place_3). Rega (Swiss Air Rescue) was a topic. Then someone told that there was a car accident or something at Migrolino (Swiss convenience store supplier). Then I dreamed that I was downstairs in the Migrolino. Down there was the hospital bed. Rega was refueling down there, waiting for me. Then they put me in the Rega. And then the helicopter kind of crashed, so, the electronics crashed for a moment. There was no light. Then they were able to restart it. Then they drove me to the nursing home to ( place_2). Like so to place_2. Then I was out there in place_2 in a nursing home. I was just lying like that in a hallway (corridor). They didn't have a free bed. It was just in the hallway. Then I had such problems with my lungs and I kept wanting to tell the doctor that, but I couldn't communicate. He didn't understand me. I wanted to tell him that I had something of a cow on my lungs. For whatever reason a cow. I don't know. But, funnily enough, it was always the same doctor.

Mrs. Johanna J. was between dreams and confusion.

Many patients report experiences that can be associated with hallucinations and confusion. These  memories are often present for months after hospitalization.

Delusion/hallucination/ dreams/anxiety.

With the technical and medical possibilities on intensive care a patient can be able to survive life-threatening illnesses. These experiences of critical illness and intensive care medicine are challenging for patients and families. Often experiences made on intensive care unit (ICU) can be life changing.
In small video- or audio-sequences we would like to illustrate the experiences made by patients on ICU and how they handled their stay in this critical situation.
Many patients share their experiences on intensive care unit and show how these experiences influenced their life.

Grazie alle possibilità mediche e tecniche offerte dalla terapia intensiva, oggi un paziente può sopravvivere a malattie gravi e precedentemente mortali. L’esperienza di queste gravi condizioni di salute e l’esperienza della terapia intensiva possono cambiare la vita in modo radicale, sia ai pazienti che ai loro cari.

In questa sezione potete scoprire come altre persone hanno vissuto il loro tempo in un’unità di terapia intensiva. In brevi video o estratti di testo, i pazienti raccontano la loro permanenza in terapia intensiva, il modo in cui hanno gestito questo periodo delle loro vite, ed il modo in cui questa esperienza li ha cambiati.

Esperienze in terapia intensiva

Les possibilités médicales et techniques permettent de plus en plus souvent aux patients de survivre à des maladies graves et autrefois mortelles. L’expérience par les patients de ces maladies graves et de leur prise en charge médicale en soins intensifs peuvent changer la vie d’une manière très mémorable.

Dans cette section, vous découvrirez comment d’autres personnes ont vécu leur séjour dans une unité de soins intensifs. Dans de courts extraits vidéo ou textuels, les patients rendent compte de leur séjour à l’unité de soins intensifs. Ils témoignent également des changements qui peuvent se produire dans la vie d’une personne après les soins intensifs.

Expérience en médecine de soins intensifs

Die heutigen medizinischen und technischen Möglichkeiten lassen Patient*innen schwere und lebensbedrohliche Erkrankungen überstehen. Die Erfahrung einer so schweren Erkrankung, die eine intensivmedizinischen Behandlung benötigt, kann das Leben sehr einprägsam verändern.

Wie andere Menschen die Zeit auf einer Intensivstation erlebt haben, können Sie in dieser Sektion erfahren. In kurzen Video- oder Textausschnitten berichten Patient*innen und Angehörige,  über die Erfahrungen einer schweren oft lebensbedrohlichen Erkrankung und einer Behandlung auf einer Intensivstation. Ebenso können Sie erfahren, mit welchen Veränderungen die Betroffenen sich nach der Zeit auf der Intensivstation auseinandersetzen.

Erfahrungen Intensivmedizin

Experiences in Intensive Care

Ms. Johanna J. recounts memories from a diary written for her by ICU staff.

I did / they came in in the morning and asked me if I wanted to listen to the radio. I said, yes. They all knew we were in Health Institution_1 and I only wanted to listen to Radio Station_1. I always listened to Radio Station_1 and then with time everyone knew. They knew that if they turned on the radio, then Radio Station_1 and then I was calmer too. In Health Institution_1 they wrote a diary for me for the time when I didn't know anything. And it says once or twice in there that they would have tuned Radio Station_1 for me and then I would have calmed down, because I do hear the voices / have always heard them before. They calmed me down.

Mrs. Johanna J. remembers through a diary.

Our interviewees often have to deal with memory gaps. Their descriptions are a mixture of what they experienced themselves,what is added afterwards by relatives or team members, or feelings/emotions to which they give words afterwards. Regardless of these limitations, it is important to note that these memories represent real experiences for the patient.

Forgetting: remembering with the help of other people.

Ms Anna A. is disturbed by the proximity and discomfort of the other intensive care patients.

The noise too, a lot of noise. Machines, but not only, people too.  So although everyone was careful to speak to me clearly, but not too loudly. But there was one patient who was in such a state that he was screaming. And that was painful. So of course you are full of compassion for the person in question, but at the same time there are moments when you say to yourself but if he could just shut up. Finally, quite (-) contradictory feelings, mixed. On the one hand compassion and then on the other hand, but if he would just shut up.

Mrs. Anna A. mentioned the noise by other patients.

The intensive care unit is bustling with activity. Clinical teams are busy with intensive patient care and emergencies. The environment is dominated by machines and modern technology that enable survival in critical illness.  In addition, there are team conversations and sounds from neighboring patients. This leads to noise, light, which can be disturbing for the patients.

Johanna J.

Mrs. Johanna J. was between dreams and confusion.

Video Interview

Related experiences

Other experiences by Johanna J.

Johanna J.