Nick was a patient on our ICU, recovering from a serious illness. He needed a tracheostomy to help with his recovery. He was awake, talking, eating and drinking while we gradually reduced the support he needed from the ventilator, in a process commonly known as “weaning”. Nick kindly agreed to talk to Brendan, one of the ICU consultants, about his experiences.

This makes fascinating listening for anyone involved in tracheostomy care, especially those working in intensive care. Nick and Brendan discuss what it’s like to be on the patient side of our treatments and interventions, covering tracheostomy care in general, eating, drinking, talking and the “sprinting” Nick was going through as we tried to reduce his ventilator support and help him towards recovery.

Nick finishes with some important messages for healthcare staff, fellow patients and family members who find themselves involved in tracheostomy care.

A subtitled YouTube version of this interview is also available if you have any difficulty hearing Nick clearly.

Thanks so much to Nick for his generosity, openness and willingness to share his story.

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The UK National Tracheostomy Safety Project (NTSP) is committed to providing education, information and resources to improve patient safety and the patient experience for those with tracheostomies and laryngectomies. All of our resources are housed on our website www.tracheostomy.org.uk, accessed by over 30,000 visitors each month from around the world.

This is the only podcast to bring you literature reviews, hot topic discussions and interviews with healthcare staff, patients and families.

Our goal is to improve the safety and quality of care for patients with tracheostomies and laryngectomies through education. We work closely with patients, families and healthcare professionals to develop new resources to improve care. We’ve collaborated with key stakeholders in tracheostomy care since 2009, and developed freely accessible resources, supported by online learning developed with the UK Department of Health. We’ve worked with the Global Tracheostomy Collaborative since 2012 to improve care for patients and their families everywhere.

We are funded by grants, donations and in partnership with medical device companies through unrestricted awards. This podcast series is supported by unrestricted education funding from the Atos Learning Institute. The funding supports the professional production of the podcasts and videos, and the medical device companies that support us do not have any creative influence over the content that we record. All of our work is undertaken by volunteer healthcare staff, patients and their families.

Most of our content is supported by videos. You can access our training videos and resources for Basic Care, Emergency Care and Vocalisation & Swallowing. Download and print bedhead signs and emergency algorithms from our resources.

You can support our work by watching or clicking any of the advertising links that appear via the NTSP YouTube Channel. You can also donate directly to the NTSP through the NTSP website, or by clicking the Buzzsprout podcast hosting "support" links. You can support our work by watching or clicking any of the advertising links that appear via the NTSP YouTube Channel.

Support the show

Support the show

NTSP Literature Review Podcast: July 2026 (S7, Ep7)

This months papers cover:

• Safety of PDT with uninterrupted anticoagulation
• Patient perspectives on self-management of voice prosthesis after laryngectomy
• Palliative care in head and neck cancer
• One-way "speaking" valves and early mobilisation in ICU
• CT assessment of trachea changes after tracheostomy

Link to supporting PDF: https://tracheostomy.org.uk/Podcast-Resources

You can sign up to our community to keep informed of our work here: https://ntsp-ltd.myklpages.com/l/XTFSzY

The UK National Tracheostomy Safety Project (NTSP) is committed to providing education, information and resources to improve patient safety and the patient experience for those with tracheostomies and laryngectomies. All of our resources are housed on our website www.tracheostomy.org.uk, accessed by over 30,000 visitors each month from around the world.

This is the only podcast to bring you literature reviews, hot topic discussions and interviews with healthcare staff, patients and families.

Our goal is to improve the safety and quality of care for patients with tracheostomies and laryngectomies through education. We work closely with patients, families and healthcare professionals to develop new resources to improve care. We’ve collaborated with key stakeholders in tracheostomy care since 2009, and developed freely accessible resources, supported by online learning developed with the UK Department of Health. We’ve worked with the Global Tracheostomy Collaborative since 2012 to improve care for patients and their families everywhere.

We are funded by grants, donations and in partnership with medical device companies through unrestricted awards. This podcast series is supported by unrestricted education funding from the Atos Learning Institute. The funding supports the professional production of the podcasts and videos, and the medical device companies that support us do not have any creative influence over the content that we record. All of our work is undertaken by volunteer healthcare staff, patients and their families.

Most of our content is supported by videos. You can access our training videos and resources for Basic Care, Emergency Care and Vocalisation & Swallowing. Download and print bedhead signs and emergency algorithms from our resources.

You can support our work by watching or clicking any of the advertising links that appear via the NTSP YouTube Channel. You can also donate directly to the NTSP through the NTSP website, or by clicking the Buzzsprout podcast hosting "support" links. You can support our work by watching or clicking any of the advertising links that appear via the NTSP YouTube Channel.

Support the show

Support the show

NTSP Literature Review Podcast: June 2026 (S7, Ep6)

This months papers cover:

• Co-designing laryngectomy accessible information to support the development of an education and training package for community healthcare professionals
• Tracheitis after pediatric tracheostomy
• Staff experiences of percutaneous tracheostomy in intensive care
• Percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy and thyroid isthmus penetration (PETRIS)

Link to supporting PDF: https://tracheostomy.org.uk/Podcast-Resources

You can sign up to our community to keep informed of our work here: https://ntsp-ltd.myklpages.com/l/XTFSzY

The UK National Tracheostomy Safety Project (NTSP) is committed to providing education, information and resources to improve patient safety and the patient experience for those with tracheostomies and laryngectomies. All of our resources are housed on our website www.tracheostomy.org.uk, accessed by over 30,000 visitors each month from around the world.

This is the only podcast to bring you literature reviews, hot topic discussions and interviews with healthcare staff, patients and families.

Our goal is to improve the safety and quality of care for patients with tracheostomies and laryngectomies through education. We work closely with patients, families and healthcare professionals to develop new resources to improve care. We’ve collaborated with key stakeholders in tracheostomy care since 2009, and developed freely accessible resources, supported by online learning developed with the UK Department of Health. We’ve worked with the Global Tracheostomy Collaborative since 2012 to improve care for patients and their families everywhere.

We are funded by grants, donations and in partnership with medical device companies through unrestricted awards. This podcast series is supported by unrestricted education funding from the Atos Learning Institute. The funding supports the professional production of the podcasts and videos, and the medical device companies that support us do not have any creative influence over the content that we record. All of our work is undertaken by volunteer healthcare staff, patients and their families.

Most of our content is supported by videos. You can access our training videos and resources for Basic Care, Emergency Care and Vocalisation & Swallowing. Download and print bedhead signs and emergency algorithms from our resources.

You can support our work by watching or clicking any of the advertising links that appear via the NTSP YouTube Channel. You can also donate directly to the NTSP through the NTSP website, or by clicking the Buzzsprout podcast hosting "support" links. You can support our work by watching or clicking any of the advertising links that appear via the NTSP YouTube Channel.

Support the show

Support the show