title: Clinician Perspectives on an Electronic Portal to Improve Communication with Patients and Families in the Intensive Care Unit.
abstract: Communication in the intensive care unit (ICU) often falls short of patient and family needs, putting them at risk for significant physical and emotional harm. As electronic patient portals rapidly evolve, one designed specifically for the ICU might potentially enhance communication among patients, family members, and clinicians; however, the views of frontline ICU staff on such technology are unknown.
  
  
  
  To identify clinician perspectives on the current state of communication among patients, families, and clinicians in the ICU, and assess their views on whether and how an electronic portal may address existing communication deficits and improve care.
  
  
  
  Three focus groups comprised altogether of 26 clinicians from 6 ICUs, representing several disciplines in an academic medical center in Boston, Massachusetts. Transcripts were analyzed inductively for major themes using grounded theory.
  
  
  
  We identified seven themes reflecting clinician perspectives on communication challenges and desired portal functionality: (1) comprehension and literacy; (2) results and updates; (3) patient and family preferences; (4) interclinician communication; (5) family informational needs; (6) the ICU as an unfamiliar environment; and (7) enhancing humanism through technology. Each theme included current gaps in practice, potential benefits and concerns related to an ICU communication portal, and participant recommendations. Benefits included enhanced education, patient/family engagement, and clinician workflow. Challenges included the stress and uncertainty of ICU care, fear of technology replacing human connection, existing interclinician communication failures, and the tension between informing families without overwhelming them.
  
  
  
  Overall, clinicians were cautiously supportive of an electronic portal to enhance communication in the ICU and made several specific recommendations for design and implementation. As new technologies expand opportunities for greater transparency and participation in care, clinician buy-in and positive impact will depend, in large part, on the extent to which the concerns of stakeholders are addressed. At the same time, clinicians anticipate several potential benefits that could help support provider workflow and engage patients and families through enhanced communication and humanism.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.|2 Department of Medicine.
authors.forename: Sigall K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Bell
authors.affiliation: 3 Department of Health Care Quality.
authors.forename: Stephanie D
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-7569-3241
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Roche
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.|2 Department of Medicine.
authors.forename: Anna C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Johansson
authors.affiliation: 3 Department of Health Care Quality.
authors.forename: Kristin P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: O'Reilly
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Social Work.
authors.forename: Barbara S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: 2 Department of Medicine.|3 Department of Health Care Quality.
authors.forename: Kenneth E
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Sands
authors.affiliation: 5 Department of Anesthesia, and.
authors.forename: Daniel S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Talmor
authors.affiliation: 6 Center for Health Care Delivery Science, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts.|7 Center for Humanizing Critical Care, Intermountain Medical Center, Murray, Utah; and.|8 Department of Medicine, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah.
authors.forename: Samuel M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Brown
mesh_terms: D000046:Academic Medical Centers; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003142:Communication; D003422:Critical Care / Q000592:standards; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D066296:Grounded Theory; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D008297:Male; D008404:Massachusetts; D010358:Patient Participation; D000072638:Patient Portals; D011368:Professional-Family Relations; D036301:Qualitative Research
keywords: communication; critical care; health information technology; patient engagement; qualitative research