Proactive Ethics Intervention to Improve Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Care

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Intensive Care Unit Days
• Interventions: Behavioral: Proactive Ethics Intervention

• Registration Number: NCT00996814
• Lead Sponsor: California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute

Brief Summary

The primary aim of the study is to demonstrate the value of a preemptive approach to ethics consultation in an ICU. The investigators hope to answer the question: Will proactive ethics interventions by a skilled and experienced ethicist, participating in treatment discussions with physicians and nurses, as well as discussions with patients/surrogates, improve the quality of ICU care experienced by patients requiring prolonged treatment in the ICU (5 days or longer) by increasing their perceived quality of care and reducing the length of stay in the ICU by non-survivors?

The study is a randomized trial of the use of an ethics consultant to address latent or manifest ethical issues in patients who remain in the ICU for five days or more, as compared to usual care. The investigators are testing the hypothesis that expanding the role of ethics consultations in the ICU to make them proactive will improve the process and outcomes of patient care by shortening the length of stay in non-survivors, and reducing suffering and unwanted and/or unnecessary aggressive treatments.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2007-10
• Study First Submitted: 2009-09-14
• Study First Submitted QC: 2009-10-15
• Study First Posted: 2009-10-16
• Primary Completion: 2010-02
• Study Completion: 2010-02
• Status Verified: 2012-01
• Last Update Submitted: 2012-01-10
• Last Update Posted: 2012-01-11

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 386

Inclusion Criteria

• Adult (over 18 years of age)
• Under treatment for five days or more in the ICU

Exclusion Criteria

• Under the age of 18
• Non-English Speaking

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Proactive Ethics Intervention	Proactive Ethics Intervention	These patients have an ethics consultant involved in their care beginning on the fifth day of treatment in the ICU

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Length of Stay in Days	Date and time of admission to date and time of discharge (in 24 hour periods)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Patient Satisfaction	Survey administered every two days while patient is in the ICU and a final survey one month after discharge from the hospital
Provider satisfaction	Survey administered daily while patient in under their care and 48 hours after their patient's discharge

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

California Pacific Medical Center; 🇺🇸 San Francisco, California, United States