Identification of delirium in the elderly hospitalized in intensive care units: integrative review

Objective: To analyze the measures that nursing uses to detect elderly people with delirium admitted to intensive care units. Method: This is an integrative review. The data collection period occurred from 11/1/18 to 1/3/19. Results: The total of analyzed articles 56.25% address the use of instruments for detecting and evaluating delirium, 37.5% reflect that nursing is an essential team for the detection of delirium and 12.5% report on the level of knowledge as a determining factor for the detection of delirium and the application of nursing care. Conclusion: Brazilian scientific production is still progressing, pointing out that nursing, in general, needs strategies for detecting delirium in the elderly. Thus, it is necessary that education be the driving force for the recognition of the syndrome and, therefore, it is important to improve knowledge so that the quality of nursing practices meets the needs of patients with delirium.