The Effect on Pain, Anxiety and Sleep Levels of Virtual Visiting in the Cardiovascular Surgery Intensive Care Unit: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Cardiovascular diseases are a group of disorders of the heart and blood vessels, causing an estimated 17.9 million deaths globally each year, and are among the leading causes of death worldwide.Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery, considered a last-resort treatment option in terms of cardiovascular disease risk factors, is a costly intervention; however, it has shown an increasing trend in its application over the past 50 years and remains the most commonly performed cardiac surgical procedure worldwide.Postoperative complications not only negatively affect the patient's recovery process but also lead to an increase in healthcare costs (9). Common issues related to surgery and anesthesia include changes in the respiratory, circulatory, and neurological systems, as well as discomfort such as pain, nausea, and vomiting.Additionally, the isolated environment of the intensive care unit can lead to various emotional problems such as delirium, anxiety, depression, spiritual distress, pain, and sleep disturbances, alongside physiological complications.

Technology provides significant convenience in all aspects of our lives. The use of technological applications in healthcare is becoming increasingly widespread and is preferred by patients, their relatives, and healthcare professionals. Surgical procedures can lead to both physical and psychological complications in patients. The fact that the patient is in a foreign environment, such as an intensive care unit, and cannot see their loved ones at will, adds an extra source of stress for the patient.

Virtual visitation in the intensive care unit is not only an easy, cost-effective, and reliable method, but it can also have positive psychological effects for both the patient and their family. The virtual visitation application can be used as an alternative option for relatives who cannot visit the hospital due to distance, cost, illness, or other responsibilities, and as a result, cannot meet with their loved one. From the patient's perspective, being able to meet with a relative at any time during treatment in the foreign and complex environment of the intensive care unit has been shown to have positive effects in the studies in the literature. However, in the related literature review, it was observed that virtual visitation was only used during the COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) pandemic, and there were no studies that combined virtual visits with face-to-face visits. Virtual visitation should also be an alternative visitation option for patients who undergo major surgeries, such as coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery, and require postoperative follow-up in the intensive care unit. No studies have been found evaluating pain, anxiety, and sleep levels in CABG patients after virtual visits, and it is expected that this study will contribute to the literature in this regard.