End-Of-Life Communication in the ICU

Talking to patients and their families about end-of-life issues can be difficult and stressful. End of Life Communication in the ICU looks at ways different cultures view death and then further explores how health care providers around the world communicate about such sensitive issues as withholding or withdrawing life support and discussing options when the outcome is uncertain. Through a better understanding of cultural differences in attitudes about death and methods of communications about end-of-life issues, practitioners can be better prepared to communicate with their own patients and their patients’ families.

Advances in technology have led to a global network of physicians in which information, data, and practices can be openly shared to help ensure high-quality care. End-of-Life Communication in the ICU is a manifestation of this belief that a multiplicity of perspectives can assist in the decision-making process. The book, with contributions from a diverse group of leaders in the international ICU community, examines how different cultures view death and explores how healthcare providers around the world communicate to patients and family members such sensitive issues as withholding or withdrawing life support and discussing options when the outcome is uncertain. Intensivists and other members of the intensive care unit will benefit greatly from this thoughtful dialogue about the emotional, ethical, and legal complexities of making end-of-life decisions.