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A National VA Palliative Care Quality Improvement Project for Improving Intensive Care Unit Family Meetings (ICU-FMs).

Akgün KM, Gruenewald DA, Smith D, Wertheimer D, Luhrs C. A National VA Palliative Care Quality Improvement Project for Improving Intensive Care Unit Family Meetings (ICU-FMs). Journal of pain and symptom management. 2019 Dec 1; 58(6):1075-1080.

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Abstract:

BACKGROUND: We sought to increase intensive care unit-family meeting (ICU-FM) documentation in the electronic health record in Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals. MEASURES: Primary outcomes were proportion of VA decedents with ICU-FM and Bereaved Family Survey-Performance Measure (BFS-PM) scores of "excellent." INTERVENTION: Quality improvement (QI) project, clinical champion, and ICU-FM templates were implemented in nine participating VA facilities. ICU-FMs and BFS-PM were determined in decedents between 2011 and 2018. OUTCOMES: ICU-FM increased from 3% to 28% in participating vs. 5% to 6% in nonparticipating facilities over time. Participating facilities were five-fold more likely to have ICU-FMs among ICU decedents (OR  =  5.69, [4.45-7.28]). Facility-wide excellent BFS-PM scores increased by 19% in participating vs. nonparticipating facilities at the end of the observation period (OR  =  1.19, [1.10-1.30]), but no difference between groups was observed in patients who died in the ICU. CONCLUSIONS: Increasing ICU-FMs is necessary but not sufficient to improve family-reported satisfaction after an ICU death.




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