Benefits of the Involvement of Nurses in Meetings Between Physicians and the Families of Patients in the ICU.
Benefits of the Involvement of Nurses in Meetings Between Physicians and the Families of Patients in the ICU.
When a patient is admitted to the ICU this often happens so suddenly that this can create a
 significant amount of stress and anxiety for family members for several reasons. Firstly, the
 family does not have a pre existing relationship with the ICU team. Secondly, the urgency of
 the situation and the technic it requires is often such that minimal information can be given
 to family members. And finally, as a result of the unpredictability of each patient's
 condition, it can be difficult to predict outcome for family members. Together, these factors
 compound the stress and anxiety of family members. This anxiety is natural and it is
 important for health caregivers to be able to offer the best support possible. A high quality
 communication provided by structured information given by physicians and nurses as well could
 improve support to the families and lead to greater satisfaction.

 Giving information to families during meetings is crucial at 3 moments: at the first day when
 the patient is admitted, at day 3, weekly and each time important news is given (surgery,
 deterioration in condition, end-of-life).

 The purpose of this project is to evaluate if the involvement of nurses during those meetings
 could improve quality in communication which is assessed by mixed methods. Families and
 healthcare workers satisfaction will be assessed by qualitative methodology. Family
 peritraumatic stress, symptoms of anxiety and depression and PTSD will be assessed using
 validated scales.

 Training of healthcare workers will be done by role play. Information to the families is
 delivered using a framework for physicians and nurses. All the meetings of the study will be
 audited by a psychologist.
-Randomized trial with two arms: arm 1: information is delivered by a team (physician and
 nurse) arm 2: information is delivered by the physician alone

 -During the different meetings of the study: at day 1, at day 3, weekly and in case of
 deterioration of the patient condition.

 The other days, family information is delivered as usually in both arms.
Inclusion Criteria:

 1. patient : adult, 1 relative at minimum, mechanically ventilated at least 48 hours; and

 2. family : french-speaking, adult;

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  Conflict, organ donor, refusal to participate.