Successful outcomes for the ventilator-dependent patient

The challenges of working with the ongoing ventilator-dependent population are many. All have survived some element of critical illness to arrive at the point of step-down care. The team challenge is to craft a plan of care unique to their needs. Working through patients' pain of loss of control, the team helps patients and their families accept what is ahead--finding meaning in the smallest accomplishments and making peace. If the patient is to return home, achieving quality of life for whatever time is left is important. The ventilator dependent individual is the outlier, the variance, and the exception. Such is the challenge for the team caring for the ventilator-dependent population. It is our opportunity to make a difference.