PCOR-ICU Collaborative

​The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) was an independent, nonprofit organization authorized by Congress in 2010. Its mission was to fund research that will provide patients, their caregivers, and clinicians with the evidence-based information needed to make better-informed healthcare decisions. PCORI is committed to continually seeking input from a broad range of stakeholders to guide its work.

ICU teams participated in the PCOR-ICU Collaborative: Improving Care for Critically Ill Patients and Families Through Research Dissemination and Implementation. This program was funded through a Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Eugene Washington PCORI Engagement Award (2626-SCCM).

Led by SCCM Executive Committee members Ruth M. Kleinpell, PhD, RN-CS, FAAN, FCCM, and Jerry J. Zimmerman, MD, PhD, FCCM, the PCOR-ICU Collaborative brought together ICU teams to implement patient- and family-centered care initiatives.

The teams participated in a 10 month collaborative to implement a patient and family engagement initiative focusing on one of the following initiatives:

• Integrating patient and family participation in rounds (patient- and family-centered rounds)
• Integrating structured patient and family care conferences to mutually establish the goals of care
• Disseminating information and providing support to families about ways to assist with the care of their loved one
• Implementing open visitation (non-restricted ICU hours)
• Facilitating the use of patient and family ICU diaries
• Implementing integrative therapies, such as music or pets, in the ICU setting
• Forming or enhancing an effective patient and family advisory group
• Other project of the team’s choice relevant to patient- and family-centered care