Ways of supporting relatives in intensive care units: Overview and update

Abstract

Background: Relatives of patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) face a challenging situation: they often experience an existential crisis with great emotional stress and at the same time they are often actively involved in therapeutic decisions. The visiting restrictions of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have created new challenges in providing support to relatives. Objectives: The aim of this work is to present current and new developments in supporting relatives of critically ill patients in the form of a narrative review. Results: In recent years, numerous new approaches and projects to support relatives have been developed. They can be assigned to the following six areas: 1) presence of relatives in the ICU, 2) proactive involvement in care, 3) structured communication/information and online offers, 4) multidisciplinary cooperation, 5) organizational management and 6) follow-up offers. The evidence and the current implementation status of these measures are very heterogeneous internationally and nationally. Conclusions: Measures for providing support for ICU relatives are diverse. Some can even be implemented despite visit bans. Recent digital developments enable virtual visits and a better exchange of information between the ICU team and relatives.