Communication with mechanically ventilated patients

For patients receiving mechanical ventilation, losing the ability to speak can be one of the most frightening and frustrating aspects of critical illness.

In this episode of Critical Matters, Dr. Sergio Zanotti discusses the experience of being "voiceless" in the ICU and examines evidence-based strategies to improve communication between patients, families, and care teams.

He is joined by Mary Beth Happ, PhD, RN, Nursing Distinguished Professor of Critical Care Research at The Ohio State University College of Nursing and a nationally recognized researcher whose work has transformed our understanding of communication during mechanical ventilation.

Additional resources:

Giving Voice: Nurse-Patient Communication in the Intensive Care Unit. Happ MB. American Journal of Critical Care 2021.

Effect of a multi-level intervention on nurse-patient communication in the intensive care unit: results of the SPEACS trial. Happ MB, et al. Heart Lung 2014.

The Patient Communication Support Guide (PCSG): Development and Pilot Field Testing of a Digital Clinical Guide for Patient Communication in ICU. Tate, JA, Happ MB, et al. Ann Am Thorac Soc 2026.

Shin JW, Happ, MB., Tate, J. (2021). VidaTalk™ communication application “opened up” communication between nonvocal ICU patients and their family caregivers. Intensive and Critical Care Nursing, 66:103075. doi: 10.1016/j.iccn.2021.103075.

Shin JW, Happ MB., Tate, J., Balas, MC., Dabelko-Schoney, H., Tan, A. (2025). Preliminary efficacy of an electronic VidaTalkTMcommunication application on family-patient communication and family psychological distress in the intensive care unit: A pilot study. Heart Lung, 70: 14-22. PMCID: PMC11846697.

Books mentioned in this episode:

Culpability: A Novel. By Bruce Holsinger