The effect of family-authored diaries on posttraumatic stress disorder in intensive care unit patients and their relatives: A randomised controlled trial (DRIP-study).

Background: Critical illness and mechanical ventilation may cause patients and their relatives to experience symptoms of posttraumatic stress, anxiety, and depression due to fragmentation of memories of their intensive care unit (ICU) stay. Intensive care diaries authored by nurses may help patients and relatives process the experience and reduce psychological problems after hospital discharge; however, as patients particularly appreciate diary entries made by their relatives, involving relatives in authoring the diary could prove beneficial.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to explore the effect of a diary authored by a close relative for a critically ill patient.