Bridging the gap: the impact of post intensive care syndrome-family on intensive care unit family caregivers

Abstract

The needs of the families of intensive care unit (ICU) patients are not formally acknowledged in the critical care setting, leading to significant challenges for these families. Family members often experience various symptoms, such as anxiety and sleep disturbances (Shirasaki et al., 2024). This is due in part to the stress encountered during their ICU stay, which combined with the needs of the ICU survivor, as well as unexpected challenges post-discharge from ICU to home, can lead to Post-Intensive Care Syndrome-Family (PICS-F) (Shirasaki et al., 2024). There is a notable lack of recognition and understanding of PICS-F among critical care clinicians, including critical care nurses (Shirasaki et al., 2024). The project aimed to bring awareness among ICU clinicians about PICS-F and their role in its mitigation, leading to improved outcomes for ICU families and their loved ones. The findings of this project suggest that ICU clinicians readily confirm the relevance of PICS-F in their clinical practice.