Quality of life 9 years after an intensive care unit stay: a long-term outcome study.

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to assess long-term mortality after an intensive care unit (ICU) stay and to test the hypotheses that (1) quality of life improves over time and (2) predictions of outcome made by caregivers during an ICU stay are reliable.

Materials And Methods: Data from a 6-bed university medical ICU were reviewed. Telephone assessment of mortality and interviews/questionnaires 9 years after an ICU stay were performed.

Family satisfaction with critical care: measurements and messages.

Purpose Of Review: Family satisfaction in the ICU reflects the extent to which perceived needs and expectations of family members of critically ill patients are met by healthcare professionals. Here, we present recently developed tools to assess family satisfaction, with a special focus on their psychometric properties. Assessing family satisfaction, however, is not of much use if it is not followed by interpretation of the results and, if needed, consecutive measures to improve care of the patients and their families, or improvement in communication and decision-making.

When drugs disappear from the patient: elimination of intravenous medication by hemodiafiltration.

Twenty-three hours after heart transplantation, life-threatening acute right heart failure was diagnosed in a patient requiring continuous venovenous hemodiafiltration (CVVHDF). Increasing doses of catecholamines, sedatives, and muscle relaxants administered through a central venous catheter were ineffective. However, a bolus of epinephrine injected through an alternative catheter provoked a hypertensive crisis.

Family satisfaction in the intensive care unit: what makes the difference?

Purpose: To assess family satisfaction in the ICU and to identify parameters for improvement.

Methods: Multicenter study in Swiss ICUs. Families were given a questionnaire covering overall satisfaction, satisfaction with care and satisfaction with information/decision-making.

Family satisfaction in the intensive care unit: cross-cultural adaptation of a questionnaire.

Purpose: Family needs and expectations are often unmet in the intensive care unit (ICU), leading to dissatisfaction. This study assesses cross-cultural adaptability of an instrument evaluating family satisfaction in the ICU.

Materials And Methods: A Canadian instrument on family satisfaction was adapted for German language and central European culture and then validated for feasibility, validity, internal consistency, reliability, and sensitivity.