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March 4, 2026Communication & Medicine

Structure and variation in end-of-life discussions in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit

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Authors

EBEllen BartonMAMatthew AldridgeTTThomas Trimble

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Overview

Exploratory analysis reveals crucial phases of end-of-life discussions in a surgical intensive care setting, indicating key decisions.

Key Points

  • This research explores the structure and phases of end-of-life discussions in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit, focusing on their impact on decision making.
  • Conducted discourse analysis of six end-of-life discussions
  • Identified four phases: Opening, Current Status, Decision Making, Logistics of Dying
  • Examined interactional dynamics between physicians and families
  • Phase 2 is crucial for establishing a patient's terminal status
  • Discussions lacking a terminal status in Phase 2 did not lead to decisions in Phase 3
  • Consensus between physicians and families is key in transitioning from therapeutic to palliative care

Cite This Study

Barton et al. (2005) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69a7cce8d48f933b5eed8cd2https://doi.org/10.3138/come.2005.2.1.3
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Also Consider

Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context:

  1. 1Situating end-of-life decision making in a hybrid ethical frame2007
  2. 2C36-01 Characterizing How Surrogates Talk About End-of-life Care in the Intensive Care Unit: A Secondary Analysis of a Multicenter Observational Study2026
  3. 3End-of-life situations in cardiology: a qualitative study of physicians' and nurses’ experience in a large university hospital2018 · 33 citations
  4. 4End-of-life decision-making in very old critically ill patients2026
  5. 5Moving Towards (and Away From) Possible Discussions About Dying2024 · 1 citations