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Completed

NCT Number: NCT04961697

Family and Patient Outcomes After Pediatric Intensive Care (FOREVER)

This study aims to evaluate in the Brazilian context, the impact of the implementation of a diary program on patient and family-centered outcomes after PICU discharge. The intervention investigated will be the use of hospital diaries for the critically ill child in a cross-over study, randomized by clusters in four PICUs of Rio de Janeiro. Family members of children aged 29 days to 12 years, admitted for more than 36 hours will be included and data collection will take place upon admission, at PICU discharge and 60 days after discharge from the PICU.

Family-centered outcomes assessed will be: satisfaction with care, anxiety and depression at discharge, incidence of anxiety, depression, PTSD, burden and quality of life in follow-up. Patient-centered outcomes will be assessed in children at discharge and follow-up - quality of life and incidence of new morbidities will be evaluated. The association of clinical, social and demographic variables with family- and patient-centered outcomes will be investigated on an exploratory basis. Burnout Syndrome in PICU health professionals will be assessed before and after the intervention as a proxy of intervention security for PICU staff.

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Key information

Conditions

Post-Intensive Care Syndrome Anxiety Anxiety Disorders Behavior Behavioral Symptoms Depression Health Behavior Mental Disorders Patient Satisfaction Quality of Life Satisfaction, Patient Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders, Traumatic Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders Treatment Adherence and Compliance postintensive care syndrome

Age range

29 day–12 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

D'Or Institute for Research and Education

Rio de Janeiro, 22281-100, Brazil

About this study

More than one third of parents and patients admitted to Pediatric Intensive Care Units (PICU) develop Anxiety, Depression and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), with consequent decrease in quality of life and great social impact, known as Pediatric and Family Post-Intensive Care Syndrome (PICS and PICS-F). Strategies that minimize negative outcomes after discharge have been adopted, such as the use of hospital diaries to regularly record the impressions of family members and health professionals about the patient's evolution, hosting parents and encouraging their direct participation in care.

This study aims to evaluate in the Brazilian context, the impact of the implementation of a diary program on patient and family-centered outcomes after discharge. The intervention investigated will be the use of hospital diaries for the critically ill child in a cross-over study, randomized by clusters in four PICUs of Rio de Janeiro, totaling 200 family members in the intervention group and 200 controls. Family members of children aged 29 days to 12 years, admitted for more than 36 hours will be included and data collection will take place upon admission, at discharge and 60 days after discharge from the PICU. Family-centered outcomes assessed will be: satisfaction with care, anxiety and depression at discharge, incidence of anxiety, depression, PTSD, burden and quality of life in follow-up. Quality of life and incidence of new morbidities will be evaluated in children at discharge and follow-up, as well as Burnout Syndrome in the health team. The association of clinical, social and demographic variables with family- and patient-centered outcomes will be investigated on an exploratory basis.

With this study, we aim to contribute to a better knowledge about different family-centered outcomes in intensive care, allowing reduction of health problems and the development of policies that seek to alleviate suffering, to humanize intensive environments and encourage participation of family members in child care during hospitalization.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Patients between age limits admitted in PICU for clinical or surgical reasons with 36 or more hours of stay and their main family member.
  • Physicians, registered nurses, nurse technicians, physical therapists and other professionals working in participants PICU involved in caring for patients and their families and taking notes in the diaries

Exclusion criteria

  • Patients admitted for monitorization or elective low-complexity surgeries
  • Patients readmitted between the first admission and the first follow-up visit
  • Patients in palliative care
  • Families with linguistic or comprehension barriers
  • Families residencies situated outside Rio de Janeiro metropolitan region

Treatment and study plan

Hospital diaries

Behavioral

Diaries will be used by family members, PICU staff or even the patient himself. They will take daily notes expressing feelings and thoughts and describing events that might help chronologically to better understand the course of disease and PICU stay. Photographs and other important PICU memories may also be used in the diary.

Primary outcomes

  1. Incidence of anxiety symptoms in family member from critically ill child.

    Time frame: 45-60 days after PICU discharge

    Proportion of main family member positive for anxiety symptoms as measured by HADS (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale from Zigmond and Snaith), a self-report standardized 14-item questionnaire covering an anxiety 7-question subscale and a depression 7-question subscale. Each subscale includes Likert-scaled questions ranging from 0 to 3. Presence of anxiety symptoms will be determined when 9 or more points on each subscale.

  2. Incidence of depression symptoms in family member from critically ill child.

    Time frame: 45-60 days after PICU discharge

    Proportion of main family member positive for depression symptoms as measured by HADS (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale from Zigmond and Snaith), a self-report standardized 14-item questionnaire covering an anxiety 7-question subscale and a depression 7-question subscale. Each subscale includes Likert-scaled questions ranging from 0 to 3. Presence of depression symptoms will be determined when 9 or more points on each subscale.

  3. Incidence of PTSD (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder) in family member from critically ill child.

    Time frame: 45-60 days after PICU discharge

    Proportion of main family member positive for PTSD as measured by PCL-5 (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist for DSM-V - Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - V from Weathers et al), a self-report standardized 20-item questionnaire covering four dimensions of symptoms: intrusions, avoidance, negative alterations in cognitions and mood and alterations in arousal and reactivity. Each subscale includes Likert-scaled questions ranging from 0 (not at all) to 4 (extremely). Presence of PTSD symptoms when 33 or more total points or positivity in each DSM-V dimension.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Evaluate family satisfaction with PICU care as measured by EMpowerment of PArents in THe Intensive Care 30 (EMPATHIC-30) questionnaire.

    Time frame: Until 72 hours after the patient discharge from Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

    Quantify family satisfaction with PICU care as measured by EMPATHIC-30 (Latour et al), a self-report standardized 30-item questionnaire covering 5 domains: information, care and treatment, organization, parent participation and professional attitude. Each subscale includes Likert-scaled questions ranging from 1 (certainly no) to 6 (certainly yes). Higher scores, higher family satisfaction with care.

  2. Evaluate alterations in family quality of life as measured by Short Form 12 (SF-12) questionnaire

    Time frame: 45-60 days after PICU discharge

    Quantify family quality of life as measured by SF-12 (Ware et al), a self-report standardized 12-item questionnaire covering a mental and a physical component, with Likert-scaled questions ranging variedly. Higher scores, better quality of life.

  3. Incidence of Anxiety and Depression in family members of a critically ill child using HADS instrument upon PICU discharge.

    Time frame: Until 72 hours after the patient discharge from Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

    Proportion of main family member positive for anxiety and depression as measured by HADS (Zigmond and Snaith), a self-report standardized 14-item questionnaire covering an anxiety 7-question subscale and a depression 7-question subscale. Each subscale includes Likert-scaled questions ranging from 0 to 3. Presence of anxiety or depression symptoms when 9 or more points on each subscale.

  4. Incidence of New Morbidity in critically ill children at PICU discharge.

    Time frame: Until 72 hours after the patient discharge from Pediatric Intensive Care Unit

    Incidence of New Morbidities in critically ill children admitted to a PICU, measured using the Functional Status Scale (FSS) upon admission, at PICU discharge and 60 days after PICU discharge. A raise in 3-points in FSS total score will be described as "New Morbidity", as assigned by Pollack et al.

  5. Incidence of New Morbidity in critically ill children after PICU discharge.

    Time frame: 45-60 days after PICU discharge

    Incidence of New Morbidities in critically ill children admitted to a PICU, measured using the Functional Status Scale (FSS) upon admission, at PICU discharge and 60 days after PICU discharge. A raise in 3-points in FSS total score will be described as "New Morbidity", as assigned by Pollack et al.

  6. Evaluate alterations in critically ill children Quality of Life as measured by Pediatric Quality of Life Questionnaire (PedsQL).

    Time frame: 45-60 days after PICU discharge

    Quantify critically ill children Quality of Life after PICU discharge as measured by Pediatric Quality of Life Questionnaire (PedsQL).

  7. Prevalence of Burden in the main family member after PICU discharge measured with Zarit Burden Scale.

    Time frame: 45-60 days after PICU discharge

    Prevalence of Burden in the main family member of a critically ill child after PICU discharge measured with Zarit Burden Scale (ZBI). This scale consists of 22 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale that ranges from 0 (never) to 4 (nearly always) with the sum of scores ranging between 0-88. Higher scores indicate greater burden.

  8. Perceptions of health professionals regarding the use of PICU diaries

    Time frame: One-month after the intervention period, which ends after the inclusion of 50 patient's family-members.

    Perceptions of health professionals regarding the use of PICU diaries using a semi-structured questionnaire specifically developed for this study

  9. Perceptions of parents and main family members of a critically ill child regarding the use of PICU diaries

    Time frame: 45-60 days after PICU discharge upon intervention period

    Perceptions of parents and main family members of a critically ill child regarding the use of PICU diaries using a semi-structured questionnaire specifically developed for this study

  10. Evaluate alterations in the three dimensions of the Maslach Burnout Inventory - emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and personal accomplishment - in PICU health professional.

    Time frame: One month before the beginning of the intervention in the PICU and one-month after the end of intervention period, which ends after the inclusion of 50 patient's family-members.

    Evaluate alterations in PICU staff Burnout Syndrome scores, measured in the three dimensions of the Maslach Burnout Inventory - emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and personal accomplishment, as a proxy of intervention security for health professionals.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

D'Or Institute for Research and Education

Other

Collaborators

  • Rio de Janeiro State Research Supporting Foundation (FAPERJ)

Registry information

Official study title

Family and Patient Outcomes After Pediatric Intensive Care

Acronym: FOREVER

Important dates

Study start
2019
Primary completion
2021
Study completion
2021
First posted
Jul 14, 2021
Registry last updated
Dec 24, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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