Journal of palliative medicine
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Family conferences are an important forum for communication, particularly for those with serious illnesses. ⋯ ICU studies supported the benefit of a family conference to the family, health care team, and hospital administration. The family conference in other clinical areas was not supported by a strong evidence base. Well-designed prospective studies are needed in multiple medical settings to assess the proposed and observed patient and financial benefits of the family conference, and determine their generalizability.