Delirium is often a contributing factor delaying extubation although the weaning itself may be straight forward. Treating any cause you can is the key to ICU delirium - new infection? drugs e.g. steroids - do they need them?, pain?, increasing uraemeia? Treat the cause. Then my first choice is small dose iv haloperidol if hypoactive delirium and not contraindicated. I also use enteral quetiapine starting 25mgs 12 hourly reviewing daily. More intuition than evidence based!

I am of the opinion that the only sure fire way is for the patient to have a 24 hour sitter. The sitters would have to rotate every couple of hours as it is a very stressful job. Usually someone sitting with the patient reassuring them, distracting them and gently preventing them from removing lines and support devices is sufficient. But leave them alone for so much as a moment and the arterial line or tracheostomy tube is waving in the breeze - and remember hyperactive delirious patients never really sleep. The 24 hour individual sitter is, however, in virtually all cases an impossible resource to provide so we usually resort to drugs.

The correct dose of haloperidol is not known but there are a number of standard ways in which it is used. Note a word of caution care of the elderly physicians/psychiatrists would start with 0.5mg and probably have a maximum of 2mgs.
Personally I usually start with 2.5mgs iv unless the patient is fairly young and fit in which case I use 5mgs, I would double that after 1 hour (it takes 40 minutes to maximum effect) then on occasion double it again to 10mgs OR more often if the total 7.5mgs has not worked I add in olanzapine 5 mgs im. I do not double up to more than 10mgs a single dose because I do not believe a bigger dose is going to work if 10mgs has not. I have seen much bigger doses used - mind 75mgs is an impressive dose - but less often now. If I am writing a regular dose I use 2.5mgs 6 hourly then an additional 10mgs can be used in between. I like to have an ECG before using haloperidol at all.

I am not surprised that benzodiazepines are often resorted to in these cases even though they are likely to aggravate the delirium itself they can aid in the short term keeping the patient, and staff, safe.