Advocating for patients at high risk for post intensive care syndrome (PICS).

Purpose/goals: The purpose of this poster presentation is to raise awareness about PICS for critical care nurses and the members of the interprofessional team in the ICU. Our goal is to propose a strengths approach to prevent and reduce the long-term risks of PICS to patients and their families following discharge. Outcome 1: Reflect upon their roles as advocates for PICS prevention and symptom management. Outcome 2: Identify possible interventions that could be implemented to decrease the impact of PICS on the patient's quality of life post discharge. Outcome 3: Provide an effective discharge plan for the patient and the family regarding PICS prevention and management. Session description: Advances in the critical care setting have reduced the rate of mortality among patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). Although more patients are recovering from their critical illness, success needs to be reflected in both ICU survival rates and optimal patient return to prehospital functional abilities (Makic, 2016). Post intensive care syndrome (PICS) is defined as a “new or worsening impairment in physical, cognitive, or mental health status arising after critical illness and persisting beyond discharge from the acute care setting” (Needham, 2012). PICS is identified as being both common and persistent after ICU discharge, with symptoms lasting from months to years. According to Rawal (2017), "the limited awareness about PICS among caregivers, may lead to a reduced quality of life, and cause significant suffering for patients and their families.” The purpose of this poster presentation is to raise awareness about PICS for critical care nurses and the members of the inter-professional team in the ICU. Our goal is to propose a strengths-based care approach to prevent and reduce the long-term risks of PICS to patients and their families following discharge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]