The Health Promoting Conversations Intervention for Families With a Critically Ill Relative: A Pilot RCT

This randomized control trial (RCT) used a pre-test, post-test design with intervention and control groups.

In the intervention group, there were 3 health-promoting conversations with each family after the discharge. The health-promoting conversations were held within an approximately 4- to 8-week period with an interval of 2 weeks between conversations. A closing letter was sent 2 to 3 weeks after the final conversation that summarized all of the conversations and that provided further opportunities for reflection.

Baseline data were collected to assess family functioning and wellbeing in the intervention group and the control group 1-2 months after the critical illness and before the start of the intervention. Follow-up assessments were conducted 3 and 12 months after the intervention for both groups. Additionally, background data, including health history, were collected using a self-administered questionnaire that asked about age; sex; education level; habits like smoking, alcohol consumption, and physical activity; psychosocial support; co-morbidity; and risk of mortality. The latter was calculated using the Charlson Comorbidity Index (Charlson et al., 1987).

The main outcome variables in this study were family functioning and family wellbeing. The following instruments were used in this study: 1) General Functioning (GF) sub-scale from the McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD); 2) Family Sense of Coherence (F-SOC/F-KASAM); 3) Herth Hope Index (HHI); and 4) Medical Outcome Short-Form health survey (SF-36).