Effect of Intensivist Communication in a Simulated Setting on Interpretation of Prognosis Among Family Members of Patients at High Risk of Intensive Care Unit Admission

Key Points Question Do intensivist communication patterns affect the way family members understand their loved one’s prognosis in the intensive care unit? Findings In this randomized trial of 302 family members of people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease receiving long-term oxygen therapy, participants were asked to imagine their family member was in the intensive care unit, and the participants were presented video vignettes of an intensivist who expected a patient to die answering the prognostic question “What do you think is most likely to happen?” Participants who viewed videos of the intensivist using indirect or redirection language perceived the intensivist to be more optimistic than participants who viewed a video of the intensivist answering the question directly. Meaning These findings suggest that family members interpret physicians’ indirect responses to questions about prognosis as more optimistic than direct responses.