De Lemos et al developed the Vancouver Interaction and Calmness Scale (VICS) for monitoring sedation in adults receiving mechanical ventilation in the intensive care unit (ICU). The level of patient interaction and sedation are monitored separately rather than combined into a single score. The authors are from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.
Parameters:
(1) interaction
(2) calmness
NOTE: The original scoring is a 6 point scale with responses ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree. These responses require an intermediate mapping (for example: if the patient is agitated then I strongly disagree that the patient is calm). For the implementation I have maintained the same scoring but modified the response terms to try to make it more direct.
Interaction score components - The patient:
(1) interacts
(2) communicates
(3) provides reliable information
(4) cooperates
(5) needs encouragement to respond to question
|
Original Response |
Modified |
Item 1 to 4 |
Item 5 |
|
strongly agree |
a great deal |
6 |
1 |
|
agree |
a good deal |
5 |
2 |
|
mildly agree |
somewhat |
4 |
3 |
|
mildly disagree |
a little |
3 |
4 |
|
disagree |
minimal |
2 |
5 |
|
strongly disagree |
not at all |
1 |
6 |
interaction score =
= (SUM(points for all 5 components)) / 30
Calmness score components - The patient is:
(1) calm
(2) restless
(3) distressed
(4) moving around uneasily in bed
(5) pulling at lines and tubes
|
Original Response |
Modified |
Item 1 |
Items 2 to 5 |
|
strongly agree |
all of the time |
6 |
1 |
|
agree |
most of the time |
5 |
2 |
|
mildly agree |
often |
4 |
3 |
|
mildly disagree |
sometimes |
3 |
4 |
|
disagree |
a little |
2 |
5 |
|
strongly disagree |
not at all |
1 |
6 |
calmness score =
= (SUM(points for all 5 components)) / 30
Interpretation:
• minimum interaction or calmness score: 0.03
• maximum interaction or calmness score: 1.00
• The higher the interaction score the greater the degree of interaction.
• The higher the calmness score the greater the degree of calmness.
Performance:
• The authors reported that the scale was reliable, valid and responsive.
Specialty: Pedatrics, Critical Care, Emergency Medicine, Surgery, general
ICD-10: ,
