The primary purpose of this study was to determine if there was a difference in patients’ self-esteem during intubation and after extubation, when differences in acuity were controlled. A secondary purpose was to examine and compare the self-esteem of subjects intubated for medical or surgical reasons. A descriptive longitudinal design compared the self-esteem of 29 subjects during intubation and after extubation. A repeated measures analysis of covariance found selfesteem to be significantly higher after extubation in subjects as a whole, when acuity at extubation was controlled. A repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance revealed a significant interaction effect for reason of intubation. Only medical patients experienced an increase in self-esteem over time. Their selfesteem was also lower when they were intubated. The findings support the dynamic nature of self-esteem in hospitalized patients. The implications of the study for research and practice are discussed.
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