Let's talk delirium
#ImYourNurseYouAreSafeWithMe
About us
The story behind our campaign
Over the past few years, the recognition of delirium in hospitals has improved. With this recognition has come the realization that along with identifying and treating the underlying medical cause, there is a need for good care directed towards the prevention of dehydration, constipation, pain, and the opportunity for physical and mental activity. Recent national audits show that this level of care is improving, thought admittedly there is still room for improvement.
The next step in the care of people experiencing delirium is to provide the psychological care their stories tell us is currently missing. This campaign aims to start us thinking and talking about that emotional support. Emotional support is necessary to help people with delirium to feel understood and secure during their ordeal and to facilitate recovery.
Hallucinations, both visual and auditory, commonly accompanied with fears of torture and execution unsurprisingly, evoke high levels of fear and anxiety. Patients have told us in their stories that hearing a calm, strong voice telling them, “you are safe with me”, made a difference making them feel secure when being care for.
Every care delivery is an opportunity to provide the emotional support a person with delirium needs, by saying, “I’m your nurse/therapist/doctor, you are safe with me”, we can start to reinforce a sense of safety.
Who we are
We are a group of healthcare professionals who care for people experiencing delirium and their families. Our aim is to share our knowledge with patients, families, and other healthcare professionals in all settings and to raise awareness of delirium to improve the person and their families experience and recovery.
We are:
Jo James RN, MSc, PG Cert Older People.
Jo is working at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust as Consultant Nurse for Dementia and Delirium. She has been involved in local and national initiatives to improve care of patients with dementia and delirium in hospital. She works closely with the Royal College on Nursing and is currently Chair of the Older People’s Nursing Forum.
Vicki Leah PhD, PGCert
Vicki is a consultant nurse and nurse lecturer at the University of East London. She has a long history of working with older people and their families to improve the experience of hospital admission and discharge. Vicki has worked with the Royal College of Nursing and Institute for Healthcare Improvement on a number of national projects and has research interests in dementia and delirium.
Mel Frances
Mel is an artist, writer and educator, and has been working as the Digital Theatre Consultant on Innovating Knowledge Exchange: Improving Patient Experience in the NHS, a collaborative project between Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and NHS Imperial Healthcare Trust. Mel has built this website collaboratively with Vicki and Jo.
Get in Touch
We would like to hear from people who have experienced delirium, either as a patient or family/friend. Your story will add to the understanding of delirium and how care needs to adapt to promote recovery.