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Cited by 397Palliative Care and End-of-Life IssuesFamily and Patient Care in Intensive Care UnitsPalliative and Oncologic Care

The family conference as a focus to improve communication about end-of-life care in the intensive care unit: opportunities for improvement

Curtis, J. Randall, Patrick, Donald L., Shannon, Sarah E., Treece, Patsy D., Engelberg, Ruth A., Rubenfeld, Gordon D.·2001·Critical Care Medicine
DOI 10.1097/00003246-200102001-00006
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Abstract

The intensive care unit (ICU) represents a hospital setting in which death and discussion about end-of-life care are common, yet these conversations are often difficult. Such difficulties arise, in part, because a family may be facing an unexpected poor prognosis associated with an acute illness or exacerbation and, in part, because the ICU orientation is one of saving lives. Understanding and improving communication about end-of-life care between clinicians and families in the ICU is an important focus for improving the quality of care in the ICU. This communication often occurs in the "family conference" attended by several family members and members of the ICU team, including physicians, nurses, and social workers. In this article, we review the importance of communication about end-of-life care during the family conference and make specific recommendations for physicians and nurses interested in improving the quality of their communication about end-of-life care with family members. Because excellent end-of-life care is an important part of high-quality intensive care, ICU clinicians should approach the family conference with the same care and planning that they approach other ICU procedures. This article outlines specific steps that may facilitate good communication about end-of-life care in the ICU before, during, and after the conference. The article also provides direction for the future to improve physician-family and nurse-family communication about end-of-life care in the ICU and a research agenda to improve this communication. Research to examine and improve communication about end-of-life care in the ICU must proceed in conjunction with ongoing empiric efforts to improve the quality of care we provide to patients who die during or shortly after a stay in the ICU.

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  • Goals-of-care discussions are an important process measure in palliative care research and likely mediate the delivery of patient-centered, goal-concordant care.

    “Goals-of-care discussions are an important process measure in palliative care research, and likely mediate the delivery of patient-centered, goal-concordant care.6–8”

    From Assessment of a Zero-Shot Large Language Model in Measuring Documented Goals-of-Care Discussions (2026) · cites this paper as [7]

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Authors
Curtis, J. R., Patrick, D. L., Shannon, S. E., Treece, P. D., Engelberg, R. A., & Rubenfeld, G. D.
Affiliations
University of Washington (US)
ORCID
Venue
Critical Care Medicine
Publisher
Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health)
Published
2001-02
Volume
29
Issue
Supplement
Pages
N26-N33
ISSN
0090-3493 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1097/00003246-200102001-00006
OpenAlex
W1993264340
Cited by
397
References
47
Citations by year
2026: 9 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 18 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 17 · 2016: 14 · 2015: 18 · 2014: 25 · 2013: 16 · 2012: 15
FWCI
2.47
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Critical Care Medicine (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DigitalGeorgetown (Georgetown University Library) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Palliative Care and End-of-Life Issues
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › Radiological and Ultrasound Technology › Family and Patient Care in Intensive Care Units
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Palliative and Oncologic Care
Keywords
family meetings, end-of-life care, intensive care unit, clinician-family communication, physician-family communication, nurse-family communication, communication about death, quality of care, social workers, prognosis disclosure, dying patients
MeSH terms
Communication, Critical Care, Decision Making, Family, Humans, Medical Staff, Hospital, Nursing Staff, Hospital, Patient Care Planning, Professional-Family Relations, Prognosis, Research, Terminal Care, Advance Directives, Total Quality Management, Patient Selection, Needs Assessment

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