Increasing numbers of survivors of critical illness are at risk for physical, cognitive, and/or mental health impairments that may persist for months or years after hospital discharge. The ...post-intensive care syndrome framework encompassing these multidimensional morbidities was developed at the 2010 Society of Critical Care Medicine conference on improving long-term outcomes after critical illness for survivors and their families.
To report on engagement with non-critical care providers and survivors during the 2012 Society of Critical Care Medicine post-intensive care syndrome stakeholder conference. Task groups developed strategies and resources required for raising awareness and education, understanding and addressing barriers to clinical practice, and identifying research gaps and resources, aimed at improving patient and family outcomes.
Representatives from 21 professional associations or health systems involved in the provision of both critical care and rehabilitation of ICU survivors in the United States and ICU survivors and family members.
Stakeholder consensus meeting. Researchers presented summaries on morbidities for survivors and their families, whereas survivors presented their own experiences.
Future steps were planned regarding 1) recognizing, preventing, and treating post-intensive care syndrome, 2) building strategies for institutional capacity to support and partner with survivors and families, and 3) understanding and addressing barriers to practice. There was recognition of the need for systematic and frequent assessment for post-intensive care syndrome across the continuum of care, including explicit "functional reconciliation" (assessing gaps between a patient's pre-ICU and current functional ability at all intra- and interinstitutional transitions of care). Future post-intensive care syndrome research topic areas were identified across the continuum of recovery: characterization of at-risk patients (including recognizing risk factors, mechanisms of injury, and optimal screening instruments), prevention and treatment interventions, and outcomes research for patients and families.
Raising awareness of post-intensive care syndrome for the public and both critical care and non-critical care clinicians will inform a more coordinated approach to treatment and support during recovery after critical illness. Continued conceptual development and engagement with additional stakeholders is required.
delirium is an acute state of confusion that affects >20% of hospitalised patients. Recent literature indicates that more severe delirium may lead to worse patient outcomes and health system ...outcomes, such as increased mortality, cognitive impairment and length of stay (LOS).
using systematic review methodology, we summarised associations between delirium severity and patient or health system outcomes in hospitalised adults. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL and Scopus databases with no restrictions, from inception to 25 October 2018. We included original observational research conducted in hospitalised adults that reported on associations between delirium severity and patient or health system outcomes. Quality of included articles was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. The level of evidence was quantified based on the consistency of findings and quality of studies reporting on each outcome.
we included 20 articles evaluating associations that reported: mortality (n = 11), cognitive ability (n = 3), functional ability (n = 3), patient distress (n = 1), quality of life (n = 1), hospital LOS (n = 4), intensive care unit (ICU) LOS (n = 2) and discharge home (n = 2). There was strong-level evidence that delirium severity was associated with increased ICU LOS and a lower proportion of patients discharged home. There was inconclusive evidence for associations between delirium severity and mortality, hospital LOS, functional ability, cognitive ability, patient distress and quality of life.
delirium severity is associated with increased ICU LOS and a lower proportion of patients discharged home. Delirium severity may be a useful adjunct to existing delirium screening to determine the burden to health care system resources.
Background
We now know that nurses are at greater risk for suicide than others in the general population. It is known that job stressors are prevalent in nurses who die by suicide. Yet, little is ...known about targeted suicide prevention for nurses. The first nurse‐centric Healer Education Assessment and Referral (HEAR) suicide prevention program was piloted for 6 months in 2016. The HEAR program was effective in identifying at‐risk nurses.
Aim
The purpose of this paper is to report the 3‐year sustainability and outcomes of this nurse suicide prevention program.
Methods
Descriptive statistics are provided of program outcomes over the course of 3 years.
Results
Over the 3 years, 527 nurses have taken advantage of the screening portion of the program. Of these, 254 (48%) were Tier 1 high risk, and 270 (51.2%) were Tier 2 moderate risk. A startling 48 (9%) had expressed thoughts of taking their own life, 51 (9.7%) had a previous suicide attempt, whereas only 79 (15%) were receiving counseling or therapy. One hundred seventy‐six nurses received support from therapists electronically, over the phone, or in person; 98 nurses accepted referral for treatment. The number of group emotional debriefs rose from eight in 2016 to 15 in 2017 to 38 in fiscal year 2019. Many of the debriefs are now requested (vs. offered), demonstrating the development of a culture open to reaching out for mental health treatment.
Linking Evidence to Action
The initial success of this pilot program has been sustained. A nurse suicide prevention program of education, assessment, and referral is feasible, well‐received, proactively identifies nurses with reported suicidality and facilitates referral for care. The HEAR program has provided service to physicians and residents for 10 years and now supports effectiveness in nurses. The HEAR program is portable and ready for replication at other institutions.
The Society of Critical Care Medicine has released updated recommendations for care of the family in neonatal, pediatric, and adult intensive care units. Translation of the recommendations into ...practice may benefit from a supporting theoretical framework. Facilitated sensemaking is a mid-range theory built from the same literature that formed the basis for recommendations within the guidelines. The process of facilitated sensemaking may be used to help nurses adopt the SCCM recommendations into practice through the development of caring relationships, promoting family presence, teaching family engagement strategies, and supporting families with communication, information gathering, and participation in decision-making.
OBJECTIVEThe aim of this study was to test a strategy for quantifying incidence of nurse suicide using San Diego County data as a pilot for national investigation.
BACKGROUNDWorldwide, 1 person dies ...by suicide every 40 seconds; more than 1 000 000 suicides occur yearly. Suicide rates for nurses in the United States have not been evaluated. This methodological article tested a strategy to identify incidence of nurse suicide compared with those of physicians and the general public.
METHODDeidentified San Diego County Medical Examiner data from 2005 to 2015 were analyzed with a descriptive epidemiologic approach.
RESULTSOverall RN (18.51) and physician (40.72) incidences of suicide per 100 000 person-years were higher than the San Diego general population, excluding nurses (15.81) normalized to 100 000 person-years.
CONCLUSIONSEstablishing incidence of nurse suicide is confounded by variation in reporting mechanisms plus incomplete availability of nurse gender data. Relatively small outcome numbers compared with the general population may underestimate results. Research using a larger sample is indicated. Nurse executives may decrease risk by proactively addressing workplace stressors.
Current guidelines from the U.S. Society for Critical Care Medicine state that training in "good communication skills...should become a standard component of medical education and ... available for ...all ICU caregivers". We sought to train multidisciplinary teams of ICU caregivers in communicating with the families of critically ill patients to improve staff confidence in communicating with families, as well as family satisfaction with their experiences in the ICU.
Pre- and postintervention design.
Community hospital medical and surgical ICUs.
All patients admitted to ICU during the two time periods.
Ninety-eight caregivers in multidisciplinary teams of five to eight individuals trained in a standardized approach to communicating with families of ICU patients using the Setup, Perception, Invitation, Knowledge, Emotions, Strategy (or Subsequent) (SPIKES) protocol followed by participation in a simulated family conference.
Staff confidence in communicating with family members of critically ill patients was measured immediately before and 6-8 weeks after training sessions using a validated tool. Family satisfaction using seven items measuring effectiveness of communication from the Family Satisfaction in the ICU (24) tool in surveys received from family members of 121 patients admitted to the ICU before and 121 patients admitted to the ICU after trainings was completed.
Using 46 matched pre- and postsurveys, staff confidence in communicating with family members of critically ill patients increased significantly (p < 0.001) in each of 21 separate measures. Family satisfaction with communication showed significant (p < 0.05 or better) improvement in three of seven individual items compared with those same items pretraining. There was no decline in any individual item.
A simple intervention resulted in improvement in staff confidence, as well as in multiple measures of family satisfaction with communication. This intervention is easily reproduced.
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, and estimates of suicide among health professionals are higher than the general population. High rates of suicide among physicians and nurses ...have been described previously, but there is a lack of data for suicides completed by pharmacists.
The purpose of this study was to quantify the incidence, means, and characteristics of pharmacist suicides in the United States.
Data were obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) for the years 2003-2018. The dataset contained all suicides, coded by occupation, reported by medical examiners and law enforcement from 39 states and Washington DC and Puerto Rico. Suicide characteristics were compared between pharmacists and nonpharmacists. Age-adjusted rates were calculated for 2004, 2009, and 2014.
During 2003-2018, the NVDRS contained 316 pharmacist suicides compared with 213,146 nonpharmacist suicides. The age-adjusted rates per 100,000 people were 19.6, 20.1, and 18.2 for 2004, 2009 and 2014, respectively. The most common means of suicide was firearm. Associated factors for suicide included job problems, current mental illness treatment, and suicide note.
Suicide rates among pharmacists are higher than the general population. Future research is needed to evaluate the context of job-related problems to mitigate risk. Encouraging help-seeking behaviors to identify and treat pharmacist depression is warranted.
The aim of this study was to answer the research question: What factors predict sense of belonging among nurses?The connection between inclusion (an element of diversity and equity) and a nurse's ...sense of belonging is poorly understood.
In this mixed-methods research, regression analysis of Climate for Inclusion Scale subscales and Sense of Belonging score plus thematic content analysis of questions assessing sense of belonging were conducted. Nurses (n = 131) attending a research conference in June to July 2022 were invited to participate; 131 (72%) participated.
Climate for Inclusion Scale was positively associated with and predictive of sense of belonging (F3,113 = 71.7, P < 0.001). Themes reflecting actions to enhance sense of belonging were as follows: authentic leadership, embracing social justice, team unification, feeling heard, being seen, professional development, developing a healthier work environment, and integration of differences.
Leaders can promote a sense of belonging among nurses by focusing on actions reflected in the themes.
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