Publications by authors named "Gabriel Heras-La Calle"

Background: Delirium, an acute brain dysfunction, is proposed to be highly prevalent in clinical care and shown to significantly increase the risk of mortality and dementia.

Objectives: To report on the global prevalence of clinically documented delirium and delirium-related clinical practices in wards caring for paediatric and adult patients in healthcare facilities.

Design: A prospective, cross-sectional, 39-question survey completed on World Delirium Awareness Day, 15 March 2023.

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Article Synopsis
  • Mental health issues among healthcare professionals in ICUs are serious, with burnout rates reaching up to 50%, and factors affecting burnout include communication and support systems.
  • The 'Hello Bundle' intervention was created to combat burnout by enhancing social interactions and team cohesion, using elements like posters, email reminders, and daily greetings.
  • A cluster randomized controlled trial will assess the effectiveness of the 'Hello Bundle', involving around 7,300 participants from various ICUs, comparing burnout levels before and after the intervention.
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Patients in delirium require trustful communication and re-orientation. We developed a flyer with positive, re-orientating suggestions for families of delirious patients in intensive care units. Suggestions include creating a safe environment, interpreting unusual behaviours positively and fostering mental resilience.

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Purpose: To identify key components and variations in family-centered care practices.

Methods: A cross-sectional study, conducted across ESICM members. Participating ICUs completed a questionnaire covering general ICU characteristics, visitation policies, team-family interactions, and end-of-life decision-making.

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Background: From the beginning, the COVID-19 pandemic increased ICU workloads and created exceptionally difficult ethical dilemmas. ICU staff around the world have been subject to high levels of moral stress, potentially leading to mental health problems. There is only limited evidence on moral distress levels and coping styles among Spanish ICU staff, and how they influenced health professionals' mental health during the pandemic.

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Aim: To explore the main feelings and coping strategies among frontline critical care workers during the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and to evaluate the level of satisfaction after a psychological crisis and emergency intervention.

Background: The health crisis brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed critical care workers to an intense physical and emotional burden. Scientific research recommends psychological crisis and emergency interventions during the acute phase to help cope with the situation and prevent emotional side effects.

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Objectives: To understand how patients and family members experience dehumanizing or humanizing treatment when in the ICU.

Design: Qualitative study included web-based focus groups and open-ended surveys posted to ICU patient/family social media boards. Focus groups were audio recorded and transcribed.

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Article Synopsis
  • * Conducted across 69 adult ICUs in 14 countries, the study analyzed data from 2088 patients aged 18 and older who were admitted with severe COVID-19 before April 28, 2020, excluding those with certain pre-existing conditions.
  • * The findings revealed that out of 4530 admitted patients, 66.9% required invasive mechanical ventilation, highlighting the significant risk of acute brain dysfunction among severely ill COVID-19 patients.
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The International Research Project for the Humanization of Intensive Care Units (Proyecto HU-CI) was initiated in 2014. The aim of this project is to change the current paradigm toward a human-centered care model. Patients, families, and professionals (everyday stakeholders) were asked to describe their ideal intensive care unit (ICU).

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Objectives: To assess the knowledge and use of the Assessment, prevention, and management of pain; spontaneous awakening and breathing trials; Choice of analgesia and sedation; Delirium assessment; Early mobility and exercise; and Family engagement and empowerment (ABCDEF) bundle to implement the Pain, Agitation, Delirium guidelines.

Design: Worldwide online survey.

Setting: Intensive care.

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Delirium, a prevalent organ dysfunction in critically ill patients, is independently associated with increased morbidity. This last decade has witnessed an exponential growth in delirium research in hospitalized patients, including those critically ill, and this research has highlighted that delirium needs to be better understood mechanistically to help foster research that will ultimately lead to its prevention and treatment. In this invited, evidence-based paper, a multinational and interprofessional group of clinicians and researchers from within the fields of critical care medicine, psychiatry, pediatrics, anesthesiology, geriatrics, surgery, neurology, nursing, pharmacy, and the neurosciences sought to address five questions: (1) What is the current standard of care in managing ICU delirium? (2) What have been the major recent advances in delirium research and care? (3) What are the common delirium beliefs that have been challenged by recent trials? (4) What are the remaining areas of uncertainty in delirium research? (5) What are some of the top study areas/trials to be done in the next 10 years? Herein, we briefly review the epidemiology of delirium, the current best practices for management of critically ill patients at risk for delirium or experiencing delirium, identify recent advances in our understanding of delirium as well as gaps in knowledge, and discuss research opportunities and barriers to implementation, with the goal of promoting an integrated research agenda.

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