Virtual family participation in adult intensive care unit rounds: A multicenter pilot feasibility cohort study

Family participation in intensive care unit (ICU) rounds is a recommended care practice by critical care professional societies. However, system and individual-level barriers may prevent families from attending rounds in person. This study aimed to assess the feasibility of virtual family participation in ICU rounds.

This multicenter prospective cohort study included family members of ICU patients who participated via videoconference in daily multidisciplinary team rounds in five adult ICUs in Montreal, Canada, between June 2023 and August 2024. Feasibility metrics included recruitment rate, intervention uptake, technical issues, and follow-up rate. Family-centered outcomes included care engagement (FAMily Engagement; FAME), satisfaction (Family Satisfaction in the ICU-24R), and mental health (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale).

A total of 72 family members participated in at least one virtual round (out of 84 enrolled; 85.7 % uptake). No technical issues were experienced in 113/132 (85.7 %) virtual rounds. Follow-up data were available for 56/72 (77.7 %) participants. From baseline to post-intervention, overall family engagement scores (FAME) increased (64.5 ± 20.5 to 69.8 ± 15.2; p = 0.045) with improvements in the perception of engagement (63.0 ± 22.3 to 70.8 ± 16.5; p = 0.04) and family-centered care (75.7 ± 16.9 to 82.1 ± 14.0; p = 0.04) domains. Overall mean family satisfaction was high (75.8 ± 17.2). Anxiety and depression symptoms were reported by 42.8 % and 23.2 % of participants, respectively.

Virtual participation by family members in ICU rounds was feasible and was associated with improved family engagement scores and high satisfaction scores. These results support the need for a multicenter trial to evaluate the effectiveness of virtual rounds in improving process and experience-related outcomes.