American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
-
Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Jan 2016
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyRandomized Trial of Communication Facilitators to Reduce Family Distress and Intensity of End-of-life Care.
Communication with family of critically ill patients is often poor and associated with family distress. ⋯ Communication facilitators may be associated with decreased family depressive symptoms at 6 months, but we found no significant difference at 3 months or in anxiety or PTSD. The intervention reduced costs and length of stay, especially among decedents. This is the first study to find a reduction in intensity of end-of-life care with similar or improved family distress. Clinical trial registered with www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT 00720200).