Spotlight on bereavement care in the ICU

Abstract

Intensive care units (ICUs) are dedicated to supporting and saving lives; yet, despite medical advances, a significant number of critically ill patients die in this setting. International mortality rates in adult ICUs in North America (Canadian Institute for Health Information, 2016; Society of Critical Care Medicine, 2018), the UK (Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre, 2018) and Australasia (Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society, 2017) have been reported to range between 7.9% and 29%, and are generally lower for paediatric ICU (PICU) patients (Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society, 2017; Paediatric Intensive Care Audit Network, 2017; Society of Critical Care Medicine, 2018). Between April 2016 and March 2017, 255 National Health Service adult critical care units in England, Wales and Northern Ireland participated in an audit of patient outcomes. The reported 13.7% mortality rate was equivalent to 23 142 non-survivors (Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre, 2018). Hence, bereavement; ‘the situation of having recently lost a significant other’ (Buckley et al., 2015, p.64) is an inherent feature of ICU practice and nursing in critical care.