Taking a patient off ventilator support.?

Hi. My Grandmother, aged 78, was put on ventilator support 8 days back. She was initially admitted for Pancreatitis and now her infection is fully cured. Now her only problem is "getting off the ventilator".
Doctors have tried to reduce her ventilator dependence to 40% and turning it off gradually. But she is not able to revive breathing on her own. We are a little perplexed and dont know what to do. Does anyone have any solution?
What is the procedure to reduce ventilator dependence and take a person off it totally?

She will be able to come off the vent only when she is well enough to breathe on her own. The respiratory therapists test her by changing the vent settings to see if her body will take over the breathing, and if it doesn't, it's back to full support. The 40% you speak of is most likely the level of oxygen she's on, not the level of support.

Some people just need more time to recover. And some, because of underlying issues, never do. I hope your grandma recovers. It seems too soon to tell. Best of luck!

There really is nothing you can do. You can only take her off the ventilator if she is able to breathe on her own. At 78 and having been seriously ill, there is a great possibility that she may not have the strength to breathe on her own. If she can't breathe on her own, if you turn off the ventilator she'll die. You, your family and the doctors should sit down and decide how long is appropriate to keep her on the ventilator and if and when to turn it off, if she never becomes able to breathe on her own.

Did the doctor's tell you that she may not be able to come off the vent? The older the patient is (in addition to other health issues) makes it very difficult to remove the vent. The longer the patient is on it at that age, makes it more difficult, too. I'm not going to lie to you. You need to corral the doctor and have them tell you STRAIGHT about her prognosis.

I hope they can get her off.

What was her breathing like before being hospitalized? I will not believe that AGE has anything to do with this situation right now.I'm in hopes that the doctors are looking at this with kit gloves and x-raying her lungs to see if there MAY be any fluid in them. (phlegm,etc). I will pray.

The longer she is on the vent the harder it is to get her off of it. If I was in your grandmothers shoes, I would not want to live on a vent for more than a week. I work in a hospital and it is not a good quality of life. Also when on a vent there is risk of pneumonia and other lung disease. Sometimes its the other diseases that kill you. ( I am NO doctor ).