ICU sedation, delirium & recovery
Opportunities and threats to communication and relationships with patients and patients’ loved ones along an intensive care unit journey: a qualitative journey mapping study
Authors' conclusion
Opportunities provide actionable steps that can be taken to enhance PFCC, while threats include inaction and factors inherent to the ICU that are more difficult to mitigate.
Study context
- Population
- Intensive care unit (ICU) patients, their loved ones, and ICU health care providers
- Participants
- 18 patients
- Comparison
- ICU health care providers vs Patients vs Loved ones
- ICU health care providersn = 10
- Patientsn = 4
- Loved onesn = 4
- Outcome
- Opportunities and threats to communication, trust, and relationship-building throughout the ICU journey
Methodological detailssemistructured interviews, directed content analysis, patient partners
- Semistructured interviews
- Directed content analysis
- Patient partners
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Opportunities and threats to relationships, trust, and communication
- Opportunities: actions the ICU team can take (e.g., predictable, consistent, timely, clear, concise, digestible information to patients and/or loved ones)
- Threats inherent to the ICU experience (e.g., patients unable to communicate, physical and psychological ICU environment)
- Systemic threats (e.g., limited health human resources)
- Threats from ineffective communication and/or inaction by the ICU team (e.g., limited consideration for patient and loved ones' decisions, goals, privacy, and/or autonomy)
Original publication
Opportunities and threats to communication and relationships with patients and patients’ loved ones along an intensive care unit journey: a qualitative journey mapping study. Can J Anaesth. Published 18 September 2025. doi:10.
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