Digital Tools for Information, Communication, Support, and Family Engagement in Adult Intensive Care Units: A Scoping...

Background: Admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) exposes family members of adult patients to substantial informational, emotional, and decisional burden. In recent years, digital tools have increasingly been used to support communication, information delivery, virtual visiting, psychological support, diary writing, and surrogate decision making in ICU settings, although the available literature remains heterogeneous in terms of intervention type, purpose, timing, and outcomes assessed. Methods: A scoping review was conducted according to Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and reported following PRISMA-ScR. The literature search was performed between January and March 2026 in PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, and CINAHL. After duplicate removal, title/abstract screening, and full-text assessment, 32 studies were included in the qualitative synthesis. Results: The included studies were published between 2016 and 2026, used heterogeneous methodological designs, and originated from different international contexts. Six main categories of digital tools were identified: educational websites and online information resources; decision aids and tablet-based tools; virtual visiting and video communication systems; digital diaries and writing practices; psychological support or self-management applications; and digital assessment or family-engagement platforms. Overall, informational and communication-oriented tools appeared to provide the clearest signals of usefulness for family orientation, information access, communication, and relational continuity, whereas evidence regarding psychological and decisional outcomes remained more variable and largely preliminary. Conclusions: Digital tools for family members of adult ICU patients represent a relevant and evolving component of family-centered critical care. Their value appears to depend on the family need addressed, the timing of implementation, and their integration into clinical workflows. Overall, the available literature suggests that digital tools may be particularly useful for family orientation, information access, and communication, whereas their impact on psychological and decisional outcomes remains less certain and requires further investigation.