REASONS FOR DISSATISFACTION - A SURVEY OF RELATIVES OF INTENSIVE-CAREPATIENTS WHO DIED

Objective: To describe the reasons for eventual dissatisfaction among the families of patients who died in the intensive care unit (ICU), re garding both the assistance offered during the patient's stay in the h ospital and the information received from the medical staff. Design: C ross sectional descriptive study, which was conducted after a survey u sing a questionnaire. Setting: Interdisciplinary ICU (n = 8 beds) at S an Giovanni Hospital in Bellinzona (CH), Subjects: Three-hundred ninet y families of patients who died in the ICU, Interventions: None. Measu rements and Main Results: A postal questionnaire (n = 43 questions) wa s sent to the families of 390 patients who died in the ICU during 8 yr s (1981 to 1989). The results referred to 123 replies: a) 82.6% of the respondents expressed no criticism of the patient's hospital stay; b) 90% considered the patient's treatment was adequate; c) 17% felt that the information received concerning diagnosis was insufficient or unc lear; and d) 30% (particularly close relatives and those relatives who were informed of the death by telephone and not in person) expressed dissatisfaction regarding the information received on the cause of dea th. Conclusions: Our survey found that the relatives of patients who d ied were most dissatisfied with the care received according to: a) the type of death (e.g., sudden death vs. death preceded by a gradual det erioration in the patient's condition); and b) the manner in which the relatives were notified of the death tin person vs, by telephone). Th e personal characteristics of the people interviewed, such as gender a nd the closeness of their relationship to the deceased, also seem to h ave some bearing on the opinions ex pressed. A high percentage of resp ondents were satisfied with the treatment received by their dying rela tive and the information conveyed by caregivers, Nevertheless, the dis satisfaction expressed by some respondents indicates a need for improv ement, especially in communicating information to the relatives of the se patients.