https://www.mdu.se/

Background: One of the most common causes for deviation in healthcare is deficiency of the verbal communication in handovers of a patient between units. The handovers of patients occur on a daily basis between anesthetist nurses and intensive care nurses. Deficiency in handovers can contribute to decreased quality of care and increased risk of complication for the patients.

Aim: To describe the experience of handover from anesthesia and intensive care nurses in healthcare. 

Method: Qualitative survey with demographic and open questions with an inductive approach where 17 surveys were analyzed.

Results: The analysis resulted in two categories emerged with subcategories. One category was Factors that improves handover with the subcategories That important information is conveyed and To have good structure in handover. The other category was Factors that disturb handover with the subcategories External factors affect handover and When handover deficient.

Conclusion: This master thesis has demonstrated experiences from specialist nurses in anesthesia and intensive care with various factors that can promote and disrupt handover in healthcare. Communication tools could be seen as a common thread through the results where checklists reduced the risk for lack of important information. Through a common approach of what information and how the information is to be communicated, compliance of handover can increase in the daily work.

Bakgrund: Vården som helhet fick ändras om under våren 2020 när COVID-19 pandemin drabbade hela världen. Intensivvårdssjuksköterskor runt om i världen fick ändrade arbetsförhållanden och de ställdes inför stora utmaningar. Många patienter blev svårt sjuka och krävde intensivvård. Det nya viruset gick inte att behandla vilket ledde till stora dödssiffror. 

Syfte: Syftet är att beskriva intensivvårdssjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att vårda patienter med COVID-19 under pandemins första våg.

Metod: Kvalitativ systematisk metod med induktiv ansats utifrån Bettany-Saltikovs och McSherrys (2016).

Resultat: Analysen resulterade i en huvudkategori och fem kategorier. Den övergripande huvudkategorin som framkom var “Att som IVA-sjuksköterska stå öga mot öga med COVID-19” där varierande erfarenheter hos IVA-sjuksköterskorna tydliggjordes. Under huvudkategorin framkom i sin tur fem kategorier “Rädsla för hotet mot den egna hälsan”, “Känslomässigt kaos när det okända blir verklighet”, “Att hantera en främmande situation”, “Hinder i vårdandet under första vågen” och “Att kunna upprätthålla god vård trots svåra omständigheter”.

Slutsats:  Genom att beskriva Intensivvårdssjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att vårda patienter under första vågen av COVID-19 kan det bidra till en ökad förståelse och fördjupa kunskapen kring den komplexa situation som pandemin innebar.

Background: Clinical pathways can enhance care quality, promote patient safety and optimize resource utilization. However, they are infrequently utilized in intensive care. This study aimed to explain the implementation process of a clinical pathway based on a bottom-up approach in an intensive care context.

Methods: The setting was an 11-bed general intensive care unit in Sweden. An action research project was conducted to implement a clinical pathway for patients on mechanical ventilation. The project was managed by a local interprofessional core group and was externally facilitated by two researchers. Grounded theory was used by the researchers to explain the implementation process. The sampling in the study was purposeful and theoretical and included registered nurses (n31), assistant nurses (n26), anesthesiologists (n11), a physiotherapist (n1), first- and second-line managers (n2), and health records from patients on mechanical ventilation (n136). Data were collected from 2011 to 2016 through questionnaires, repeated focus groups, individual interviews, logbooks/field notes and health records. Constant comparative analysis was conducted, including both qualitative data and descriptive statistics from the quantitative data.

Results: A conceptual model of the clinical pathway implementation process emerged, and a central phenomenon, which was conceptualized as 'Struggling for a feasible tool,' was the core category that linked all categories. The phenomenon evolved from the 'Triggers' ('Perceiving suboptimal practice' and 'Receiving external inspiration and support'), pervaded the 'Implementation process' ('Contextual circumstances,' 'Processual circumstances' and 'Negotiating to achieve progress'), and led to the process 'Output' ('Varying utilization' and 'Improvements in understanding and practice'). The categories included both facilitating and impeding factors that made the implementation process tentative and prolonged but also educational.

Conclusions: The findings provide a novel understanding of a bottom-up implementation of a clinical pathway in an intensive care context. Despite resonating well with existing implementation frameworks/theories, the conceptual model further illuminates the complex interaction between different circumstances and negotiations and how this interplay has consequences for the implementation process and output. The findings advocate a bottom-up approach but also emphasize the need for strategic priority, interprofessional participation, skilled facilitators and further collaboration.

Bakgrund: Tidigare forskning visar på en förändring inom intensivvården och att fler patienter vårdas lättsederade i mekanisk ventilation. Sederingsnivån ska vara tillräcklig för att patienter ska tolerera endotrakealtuben och fortsatt behandling trots obehaget det ger. Detta leder till att patienter blir mer delaktiga i sin egen vård men ställer även högre krav på intensivvårdssjuksköterskor som ska vårda dessa patienter. Syfte: Att belysa patienters upplevelse av att vara lättsederad och vårdas vaken med mekanisk ventilation. Metod: För att besvara examensarbetets syfte användes en allmän litteraturöversikt. Tjugo vetenskapliga artiklar som bestod av både kvalitativ, kvantitativ och mixed method design användes. Analysen skedde genom att identifiera likheter och skillnader i syfte, metod och resultat. Resultat: I resultatet framkom det både fördelar och nackdelar med att vårdas lättsederad i mekanisk ventilation. Tre teman framkom i analysarbetet: upplevelser av sitt tillstånd, upplevelsen av att bli sedd och hörd samt upplevelsen av samspel och delaktighet. Slutsats: Patientupplevelsen visade på både psykiskt och fysisk påfrestning. Patienter uttrycker hinder gällande kommunikation, existentiella faktorer och relationer med anhöriga och sjuksköterskor. Trots detta uttrycks önskemål om att få vårdas lättsederade i mekanisk ventilation under ett vårdtillfälle på intensivvårdsavdelningen. 

OBJECTIVE: Quality improvement initiatives in emergency medicine (EM) often suffer from a lack of benchmarking data on the quality of care. The objectives of this study were twofold: 1. To assess the feasibility of collecting benchmarking data from different Swedish emergency departments (EDs) and 2. To evaluate patient throughput times and inflow patterns.

METHOD: We compared patient inflow patterns, total lengths of patient stay (LOS) and times to first physician at six Swedish university hospital EDs in 2009. Study data were retrieved from the hospitals' computerized information systems during single on-site visits to each participating hospital.

RESULTS: All EDs provided throughput times and patient presentation data without significant problems. In all EDs, Monday was the busiest day and the fewest patients presented on Saturday. All EDs had a large increase in patient inflow before noon with a slow decline over the rest of the 24 h, and this peak and decline was especially pronounced in elderly patients. The average LOS was 4 h of which 2 h was spent waiting for the first physician. These throughput times showed a considerable diurnal variation in all EDs, with the longest times occurring 6-7 am and in the late afternoon.

CONCLUSION: These results demonstrate the feasibility of collecting benchmarking data on quality of care targets within Swedish EM, and form the basis for ANSWER, A National SWedish Emergency Registry.

Background: Patient-controlled analgesia and patient-controlled sedation (PCA/PCS) are clinically safe methods for sedation and pain management for patients without direct intervention from nurses. The methods are viewed by nurses to be a way to strengthen patients' autonomy but poses a risk of distancing patients from nurses. To broaden the perspective on these methods, this paper studies patients' experiences of PCA/PCS. Aim: The aim of this paper is to describe the patients’ experience in relation with the use of patient-controlled analgesia and sedation (PCA/PCS). Method: Integrative review based on 19 articles. Result: Two themes emerged from the analysis. The first theme was Possibilities of PCA/PCS, described by the three subthemes To have fewer side effects, To have strengthened autonomy and To be comfortable the method of drug administration. The second theme was Challenges of PCS/PCS described by the two subthemes To not have individual needs met and To feel unsafe. Conclusion: Patients' experiences of PCA/PCS have been generally positive, with strong possibilities of increasing patients satisfaction with provided care. The result shows that the methods are useful for strengthening patients' autonomy. Additionally, eventual challenges that may occur while using these methods may be alleviated with well-informed patients.

Bakgrund: Det anestesiologiska omvårdnadsansvaret kräver särskild kompetens och erfarenhet. Vid anestesiologisk vård såsom induktionen krävs nära samarbete. Kommunikationen i teamet har visat sig avgörande för teamsamarbetet. Faktorer som kan påverka kommunikationen är hierarki, stress, relationen till kollegor eller tron på den egna förmågan.

Syfte: Att kartlägga anestesisjuksköterskors erfarenheter av kommunikationen i teamet vid induktion.

Metod: Enkätstudie med kvantitativ ansats. Enkäten bestod av 35 frågor varav de första fem kartlade demografiska data. Resterande frågor bestod av påståenden vilka besvarades med likertskala. Data analyserades i Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Deskriptiv statistik gav en överblick av datainsamlingen och analytisk statistik användes för jämförelse av grupper.  

Resultat: 53 anestesisjuksköterskor besvarade enkäten. Majoriteten ansåg att kommunikationen har stor betydelse för patientsäkerheten. Samtliga uppgav att de i varierande grad vågar ifrågasätta oklarheter vid induktion. Det fanns positiva erfarenheter av att kommunikationsverktyg främjar kommunikationen.

Slutsats: För en säker vård vid induktion krävs en fungerande teamkommunikation. Kommunikationen påverkas av personliga egenskaper, arbetserfarenheter, stress eller hur olika kommunikationsverktyg används. Främjande faktorer för kommunikationen är utbildning och relationsbyggnad inom teamet. Arbetserfarenhet och ålder kan påverka hur kommunikationen i teamet vid induktion uppfattas.

Bakgrund: WHO:s checklista för säker kirurgi har använts i Sverige sedan 2009 som en del i att öka patientsäkerheten i samband med kirurgi. God kommunikation inom teamet, utbildning i användandet samt stöd från chefer och ledning har i tidigare forskning varit markörer för en god följsamhet till checklistan. Användandet av checklistan registreras i SPOR.

Syfte: Att undersöka anestesisjuksköterskors egenskattade följsamhet av WHO:s checklista för säker kirurgi samt överensstämmelse med data inrapporterad i Svenskt perioperativt register.

Metod: Induktiv kvantitativ tvärsnittsstudie där data samlades in via digitala enkäter.Analys Data presenteras med deskriptiv och analytisk statistik. Mann-Whitney U-test användes till analytisk statistik.

Resultat: Sign in är den del av WHO:s checklista för säker kirurgi med högst egenskattad följsamhet enligt deltagarna. Statistisk analys visar att det finns en signifikant skillnad i följsamhet relaterat till antalet yrkesverksamma år som anestesisjuksköterska. Skillnader finns gentemot inrapporterad data i SPOR.

Slutsats: Anestesisjuksköterskors egenskattade följsamhet av WHO:s checklista för säker kirurgi överensstämmer med tidigare forskning inom området. Behov av ytterligare forskning föreligger för att undersöka vad som kan förbättra följsamheten samt hur följsamheten påverkar patientsäkerheten.

Nyckelord operationsteam, WHO:s checklista för säker kirurgi, följsamhet, enkät, tvärsnittsstudie

Background: All the patients are apprehensive prior to anesthesia, due to the fact that they lose control of their bodies. The patients desire good contact with the nurse anesthetist, in order to convey their needs. The need for information vairy for all the patients. Some require detailed information, while others only sparingly need information. Aim: The aim of the study is to describe nurse anesthetists experience in meeting the patients prior and during anesthesia. Method: A systematic qualitative literature study of published materials was conducted. Results: The nurse anesthetists believe that it is important to see the patients needs, in order to be able to build a sense of security, in addition to good communication. The common obstacle is shortage of time, which affects contact with the patient. Conclusion: The nurse anesthetists feel a need to perform good work. But the patienten och the administration often make conflicting demands, which means that a constant consideration is needed to decide what’s best here and now.

Bakgrund: Förekomsten av delirium på intensivvårdsavdelningar är stor, cirka 80% av patienterna som vårdas på intensiven drabbas vid något tillfälle av delirium. Patienter beskriver en rädsla då delirium medför vanföreställningar och hallucinationer. Oupptäckt delirium orsakar ett lidande hos patienten och kan medföra konsekvenser för patienten såväl som samhället. Syfte: Syftet med studien är att beskriva intensivvårdssjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att vårda patienter med delirium. Metod: En integrativ litteraturstudie av 20 artiklar enligt Whittmore och Knafl. Resultat: I resultatet identifieras två teman. (1) Att uppleva okunskap och osäkerhet vid vårdandet av patienter med delirium och (2) Att arbeta omsorgsfullt. Att få tillräckligt med utbildning och ha tydliga riktlinjer är en viktig faktor för intensivvårdssjuksköterskor i hanteringen av delirium. Ökad kunskap leder till ökat självförtroende vilket i sin tur leder till tidigare upptäckt och snabbare behandling för patienten. Slutsats: Examensarbetet presenterar intensivvårdssjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att identifiera och behandla patienter med delirium. Delirium är underdiagnostiserat vilket betonar viken av att intensivvårdssjuksköterskor besitter adekvat kompetens I ämnet.

Background: In 2019, a new coronavirus broke out worldwide and caused a pandemic. It has been shown that this patient group requires more time for supervision and nursing than other patient groups who are cared for in intensive care units. Nurses who have cared for patients with coronavirus have shown psychological and physical strain.Purpose: to shed light on nurses' experiences of caring for patients with Covid-19 in intensive care unitsMethod: Qualitative inductive approach based on unprocessed material in the form of descriptive blogs from the internet. Data were analyzed according to a manifest content analysis.Results: The results revealed an overall theme: "Being nurses in the front line". Furthermore, three categories and seven subcategories emerged. The categories that emerged were: "The virus causes changes in work and private life", " To care for seriously ill patients where many die " and " To experience an unreasonable workload ".Conclusion: The degree project can be seen as a contribution to creating an understanding of the complex work environment that prevailed during today's first pandemic outbreak in the world and nurses' experiences of caring in this situation. Through its foundation in analysis of qualitative research, this can be made possible and contribute to creating tools for nurses in the future to handle similar situations and reduce the risk of ill health.

We conducted a randomly assigned, double-masked, crossover study of the effects of betaxolol, epinephrine, pilocarpine, and timolol on the high-passresolution perimetry results in normal subjects. The influence of topical administration of these intraocular pressure reducing drugs was negligible, which confirmed the reliability of high-pass resolution perimetry results. The method seems appropriate for the diagnosis of glaucoma and the follow-up ofpatients with glaucoma.

Bakgrund: Anestesi skapar oro hos patienter oavsett tillvägagångssätt. Patienter upplever att anestesisjuksköterskor är avgörande för hur deras upplevelse kommer bli. Dock känner patienter sig inte alltid sedda i en tidspressad miljö. Problem: Anestesisjuksköterskor har ett ansvar att stödja patienter utifrån individuella behov och skapa trygghet under en begränsad tidsram.  Syfte: Att beskriva anestesisjuksköterskors strategier för ett gott möte med patienter i det perioperativa vårdandet. Metod: En systematisk litteraturstudie med beskrivande syntes där 20 vårdvetenskapliga artiklar analyserats i resultatet. Resultat: Två teman kunde urskiljas. Dessa benämndes att axla ansvar för säkerhet och trygghet och att värna om den unika patienten. Utifrån dessa skapades 5 subteman vilka benämndes; Att ha ett professionellt förhållningssätt, att vårda i dialogen, att lotsa i en komplex miljö, att individanpassa vårdandet och att värna om patientens integritet och värdighet. Resultatet visade att anestesisjuksköterskor använder olika strategier i mötet med patienter som är komplext med flera aspekter att beakta. Utmaningen för mötet med patienter i den perioperativa vården ligger i det korta vårdmötet inför operationen. Slutsats: Anestesisjuksköterskor försöker anpassa vården efter individen men organisatoriska faktorer kan hindra det.

Background: Patients undergoing general anesthesia expresses a strong concern and anxiety about being anesthetized. The nurse anaesthetist also describe the prevalence of perioperative anxiety in patients in connection with surgery. The nurse anaesthetist emphasizes the importance of good communication to alleviate anxiety and promote patients' well-being. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to describe patients' experiences of undergoing regional anesthesia. Method: Qualitative literature study that includes analysis of 20 caring science articles. Results: Patients experienced various emotional phenomena such as pain, discomfort and loss of sensation. Patients highlight the importance of feeling involved in their own care. This was promoted by the physical presence and emotional support of the nurse anaesthetist. Good information was considered a prerequisite for patients to feel safe. In cases where patients felt that information was deficient, they instead felt exposed. Conclusion: The experience of undergoing regional anesthesia can be perceived as both negative and positive. A prerequisite for promoting participation and safety in patients is that as a nurse anaesthetist be able to establish a caring relationship. Knowledge of the patients' vulnerable situation, the need for closeness, contact and continuous information is crucial to carry out good nursing to promote well-being and health.

Abstract 

Background: The operating team consists of various professions that possess unique skills and knowledge that are needed for patient-safe care. The anesthesia nurse and anesthesiologist have an important role in the team, they need to work together and use their knowledge and skills to maintain patient safety. Work environment, sense of community, effective communication and hierarchical structures were considered to be the factors that had the greatest impact on this international collaboration.

Aim: The purpose of the study is to investigate the anesthesia nurse's experience of collaboration with anesthesiologist in the intraoperative stage.

Methods: The study was conducted as a qualitative interview study with semi-structured questions. The data collection took place in two operating departments in Stockholm, where 10 anesthesia nurses were interviewed. The analysis was carried out according to Lindgren et al. (2020) description for qualitative content analysis.

Results: Four categories were identified. The categories were: Sense of security in the professional role facilitates with subcategories the importance of professional experience and feeling trust in collaboration. When cooperation fails with subcategories of not being listened to and lack of trust. The effect of interpersonal relationships with subcategories personal chemistry in collaboration and handling conflicts. The impact of clarity on the working process with subcategories clear dialogue facilitates and having a clear division of labor.

Conclusions: The cooperation in the team is important as the intraoperative environment is complicated. The results shows that good communication, planning, trust and respect for each other’s professional competencies promotes teamwork and thereby increases patient safety.

Patients undergoing laparoscopic procedures need anesthetics, intravenous fluids and insufflation of carbon dioxide gas during laparoscopic surgery. The larger the time of the anesthesia and the laparoscopic procedure is, the greater is the risk of the patients being affected by perioperative hypothermia. Non-invasive and invasive warming methods can prevent the onset of perioperative hypothermia during laparoscopic surgery. Purpose: The aim of the study is to describe the nursing interventions that can prevent the onset of perioperative hypothermia and its postoperative complications during laparoscopic surgery. Method: An integrative review. Result: The study indicates that non-invasive and invasive warming methods can prevent the onset of perioperative hypothermia and complications during laparoscopic surgery. Forced air warming turns out to be the most effective treatment to prevent perioperative hypothermia. Invasive and non-invasive warming treatments seem to be more effective in combination with each other to prevent perioperative hypothermia than when administered alone. These treatments prevent intraoperative hypothermia, maintain intraoperative normothermia, increase comfort, decrease postoperative complications and improve patient recovery after laparoscopic surgery. Conclusions: This study illustrates that non-invasive and invasive warming methods can treat and prevent the onset of perioperative hypothermia during laparoscopic surgery. The study even illustrates that these warming methods prevent the postoperative complications associated with perioperative hypothermia during laparoscopic surgery. 

A patient who has been critically ill and starts to recover, will be discharged from the intensive care unit (ICU) to a general ward. A high demand of intensive care facilities can result in quick discharges causing higher risk of inadequate planning and preparation. This may result with negative consequences for the patient including readmission to the ICU, longer hospital stays and increased mortality. The intensive care nurse has the responsibility to fulfill a safe and coherent discharge. A transition is the way people respond and react to change from one place to another. The aim of this study was to describe patients experiences of their discharge from ICU to general ward. A qualitative literature study with descriptive synthesis was chosen as method. The results showed that inadequate information and preparation can create anxiety. The patients who received good support during the discharge experienced, found that it was a positive step in the right direction. The conclusion is that patients who are going to be discharged from ICU need individual information and preparation. There’s a need for routines to reduce patient concerns, facilitating communication and information and ensuring patient safety.

Background: Intensive care nurses have responsibility to provide high-quality care to critically ill patients within high technological environment based on a person-centered approach. The complex of patients' critical conditions, advanced care, environment and organizational factors makes patient-centered nursing challenging. Due to challenges, intensive care nurses require high skills whilst provision of person-centered care is of great importance to patients. Person-centered care within intensive care is important to highlight as it's not as researched as other contexts. Aim: To describe intensive care nurses' experiences of person-centered care in intensive care. Method: Qualitative inductive design, data collection with open ended questionnaires and analysis according to manifest content analysis. Results: The analysis resulted in three categories and eight subcategories. First category Challenges in performing person-centered care described insufficient resources, patients conditions, the impact of climate and need for more knowledge. Second category Conditions that promote provision of person-centered care described organizational conditions, working towards the same goal, the significance of relatives and holistic perspective. Third category emerged Positive experiences of person-centered care within intensive care. Conclusion: Intensive care nurses' experiences of person-centered care within intensive care is complex however of great importance and in need for development.

Bakgrund: När den livsuppehållande behandlingen på intensivvårdsavdelningen inte längre upplevs meningsfull för patienten utreds möjligheten för organdonation. Intensivvårdssjuksköterskan har en aktiv roll i donationsprocessen och tidigare forskning visar att sjuksköterskan upplever det som en generös handling av patienten att donera och intensivvårdssjuksköterskan gör sitt yttersta för att värna om det i vårdandet av både patienten och dennes närstående. Syfte: Syftet var att beskriva intensivvårdssjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att underlätta vårdandet av patienter i donationsprocessen. Metod: En kvalitativ studie utifrån semistrukturerade intervjuer med tio intensivvårdssjuksköterskor, dataanalys genom kvalitativ innehållsanalys. Resultat: Två kategorier framkom, ”Fokus på patienten” samt ”Möta närstående med värdighet”. Fem subkategorier framkom från kategorierna, ”Att värna om patientens vilja”, ”Att samordna vården av patienten”, ”Att bygga relationer”, ”Att anpassa informationen” och ”Att ge stöd i sorgen”. Slutsats: Intensivvårdssjuksköterskors erfarenheter av att underlätta vårdandet av patienten beskrivs som att värna om patientens vilja till donation och att få fokusera på endast donationspatienten tillsammans med teamet. I vårdandet av patienten framkom tydligt närståendes centrala roll och att intensivvårdssjuksköterskorna underlättar för dem genom relationen, information samt stöttning.

Background: When life-saving interventions are not compatible with a meaningful and dignified life for a patient in the intensive care unit, decisions are made to withdraw life-sustaining treatment, allowing for the possibility of organ donation. There are clear laws and guidelines for the process of donation. Previous research highlights the complex work of intensive care nurses, involving the care of both potential organ donors and relatives. Aim: The aim was to describe intensive care nurses' experiences of nursing care during the process of organ donation. Method: A qualitative interview study with 12 intensive care nurses. Content analysis was conducted. Results: The analysis resulted in three categories: The complex nursing care, The meaningful nursing care and Meeting the relatives in the donation process and eight subcategories emerged. Conclusion: Intensive care nurses experienced nursing care in the donation process as meaningful and as an opportunity to contribute to another person's continued life. However, nursing care was also perceived as challenging and time-consuming, both in relation to the donor and relatives. Nurses described facilitating factors such as knowledge and education about the donation process, as well as the importance of the team. A significant part of nursing care involved supporting and informing relatives.

Key words: Intensive care nurses, interview study, nursing care, organ donation.

Background: Nurse anesthetists have an overall responsibility for anesthesiological care, which among other things includes assessing and managing patients' airways. Situations of an unexpectedly difficult airway in patients occur from time to time and and put high expectations on the competence of nurse anesthetists. Making quick decisions and do the right things are crucial for the outcome of the situation and also for the patient’s safety. Aim: To investigate the experience and management of nurse anesthetists in the care of patients with unexpectedly difficult airways. Method: A survey study with quantitative study design. The survey consisted of 25 questions with answer options. All collected data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The study group was divided into two groups according to the number of years they worked as nurse anesthetist, one group representing nurse anesthetists with less experience and the other nurse anesthetists with more experience. Comparisons were then made between the groups. Results: A total of 76 nurse anesthetists responded to the survey. In the result, differences between the less experienced and the experienced nurse anesthetists could be distinguished in several questions from the survey. There were significant differences between the two groups, for instance how they experienced stress. The less experienced nurse anesthetists experienced a higher level of stress than the more experienced nurse anesthetists. Both groups felt safer when working together with an experienced colleague than with one who is new in situations with unexpectedly difficult airways. Conclusions: Experience affects how nurse anesthetists experience and manage patients with unexpectedly difficult airways. Less experienced nurse anesthetists experience more stress when managing difficult airways compared to experienced anaesthetic nurses. The risk of facing an unexpectedly difficult airway is always present, despite careful assessments of the airway. However, these situations appear quite rarely, which may indicate that the airway assessments are of great importance in anticipating an difficult airway.