Virtual Family Participation in Adult ICU Rounds: A Pilot Randomized Trial (The V-FAMILY Trial)

Participation by family members in daily health care team rounds in the intensive care unit (ICU) has been shown to improve results for both patients and their family members. For family members, participation in ICU rounds is associated with increased care satisfaction and improved mental health outcomes. However, while more than 9 out of 10 family members in the ICU express a desire to participate in ICU rounds, less than one-quarter actually do. Barriers for family participation in ICU rounds include both health care system related (i.e., restriction on visitation during pandemic, infection control) and personal (i.e., caretaker role, illness, disability, and inability to miss work). Virtual family participation may address these barriers. Virtual family participation in ICU rounds involves family members interacting with the health care team during bedside rounds via secure video communications. However, it is unknown whether virtual family participation in adult ICU rounds is feasible and can improve family-important results.

The main goal of this study is to explore whether virtual family participation in ICU rounds, as compared with usual care, is feasible. We will include 72 family members in 4 ICUs in 3 provinces. We will ensure inclusion of females and people from racialized groups. We will also explore the potential impact of virtual family participation in ICU rounds on family-important outcomes, such as mental health and care satisfaction. We will also conduct interviews with family members and critical care physicians who participate in virtual rounds to understand their experiences with virtual rounding. We will explore factors, such as age, relationship to the patient, gender, and race/ethnicity that may impact virtual family participation in ICU rounds. This study will be performed in close collaboration with patient and family group partners with experience in clinical research who will be involved throughout the research process.