Family care of terminally ill patients in intensive care unit

Abstract

Since “the recommendation on ideal terminal care in intensive care” was presented in our society in 2006, attention has come to be focused on providing care to the families of terminally ill patients. In this study, we reviewed the literature published from overseas after 2000 on the care for the families of terminally ill patients in the field of intensive care. The results were as follows. When the family is unexpectedly told that the patient is close to death, they are likely to have a psychological crisis and to show grief reactions. The need for surrogate decision-making can make the mental health of the family worse, while it can increase the family's satisfaction level with terminal care. Therefore, the process of decision-making is important. Of importance for family care are provision of guidance for family-centered decision-making and maintenance of good communication with the family, which can lead to improved family satisfaction with terminal care. Furthermore, adequate control of pain of terminally ill patients serves as an indirect way of providing care for the family. It is also important to meet the needs of the family.