Patients’ experiences of mechanical ventilation in intensive care units in low- and lower-middle-income countries: protocol of a systematic review

Mechanical ventilation (MV) in intensive care units (ICUs) is a stressful experience for patients. However, these experiences have not been systematically explored in low- and lower-middle-income countries (LLMICs). This systematic review (SR) aims to explore the patients’ experiences of MV in ICUs in LLMICs and the factors influencing their experiences. The PICO framework will be used to operationalize the review question into key concepts: population (mechanically ventilated adult patients in ICUs), phenomenon of interest (experiences) and context (LLMICs). PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, Scopus and Web of Science will be systematically searched since database inception. Citation, reference list and PubMed-related article searching of included studies will be done to ensure literature saturation. Empirical peer-reviewed literature exploring adult patients’ (aged ≥ 18 years) experiences of MV in ICUs in LLMIC will be included. All study designs (quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods) will be included. Two independent reviewers will perform screening, data extraction and critical appraisal. The mixed-methods appraisal tool (MMAT) and Popay’s narrative synthesis will be used for critical appraisal and data synthesis, respectively. This SR aims to bridge a gap in knowledge as previous evidence synthesis has described this phenomenon in developed countries. The review design, with the inclusion of quantitative, qualitative and mixed-methods studies, intends to provide a rich and in-depth exploration of the issue. The findings will be presented as themes, subthemes and their explanatory narratives. The gaps in available literature will be identified, and implications of SR findings on policy, practice and future research will be presented. The strength of this SR lies in its systematic, comprehensive, transparent, robust and explicit methodology of identifying, collating, assessing and synthesizing available evidence. By prior registration and reporting of this SR protocol, we aim to ensure transparency and accountability and minimize bias. PROSPERO CRD42024507187