The purpose of the study is to adapt and provide preliminary validation for questionnaires evaluating families' experiences of quality of care for critically ill patients in the intensive care unit (ICU).
Materials and methods
This study took place in 2 European ICUs. Based on literature and qualitative interviews, we adapted 2 previously validated North American questionnaires: “Family Satisfaction with the ICU” and “Quality of Dying and Death.” Family members were asked to assess relevance and understandability of each question. Validation also included test-retest reliability and construct validity.
Results
A total of 110 family members participated. Response rate was 87%. For all questions, a median of 97% (94%-99%) was assessed as relevant, and a median of 98% (97%-100%), as understandable. Median ceiling effect was 41% (30%-47%). There was a median of 0% missing data (0%-1%). Test-retest reliability showed a median weighted κ of 0.69 (0.53-0.83). Validation showed significant correlation between total scores and key questions.
Conclusions
The questions were assessed as relevant and understandable, providing high face and content validity. Ceiling effects were comparable to similar instruments; missing data, low; and test-retest reliability, acceptable. These measures are promising for use in research, but further validation is needed before they can be recommended for routine clinical use.
