Exploring the psychological effects of intensive care on paediatric patients: issues from the literature.

The psychological needs of children in intensive care may often be neglected in favour of a more physiological approach to nursing care. Both the short- and long-term psychological effects of paediatric intensive care require examination. There is a lack of research-based evidence on the psychological effects of intensive care on children. The intensive therapy unit (ITU) itself, developmental age, role of the family, loss of self-control/routine, under/over-use of sedation and analgesia, play, and the ITU nursing staff all have a significant psychological impact on the critically ill child. Strategies that reduce the negative psychological effects of ITU must address the above issues.