435 Hong Kong Med J ⎥ Volume 21 Number 5 ⎥ October 2015 ⎥ www.hkmj.org ABSTRACT Objectives: To examine the level of family satisfac- tion in a local intensive care unit and its performance in comparison with international standards, and to determine the factors independently associated with higher family satisfaction. Design: Questionnaire survey. Setting: A medical-surgical adult intensive care unit in a regional hospital in Hong Kong. Participants: Adult family members of patients admitted to the intensive care unit for 48 hours or more between 15 June 2012 and 31 January 2014, and who had visited the patient at least once during their stay. Results: Of the 961 eligible families, 736 questionnaires were returned (response rate, 76.6%). Te mean (± standard deviation) total satisfaction score, and subscores on satisfaction with overall intensive care unit care and with decision-making were 78.1 ± 14.3, 78.0 ± 16.8, and 78.6 ± 13.6, respectively. When compared with a Canadian multicentre database with respective mean scores of 82.9 ± 14.8, 83.5 ± 15.4, and 82.6 ± 16.0 (P<0.001), there was still room for improvement. Independent factors associated with complete satisfaction with overall care were concern for patients and families, agitation management, frequency of communication by nurses, physician skill and competence, and the Intensive care unit family satisfaction survey Introduction Providing professional care and establishing a good rapport with patients is the mission of all health care workers. Tis relationship building is part of the patient-centred health care delivery model that is currently being advocated over a clinician- or disease-centred model. 1 It is associated with better clinical outcomes and may reduce potential complaints due to miscommunication. 2-4 In the New knowledge added by this study • Tis study provides the frst dataset on the level of family satisfaction with intensive care unit (ICU) care in Hong Kong. • Factors that independently afected family satisfaction include the ICU environment, agitation management, and communication between health care workers and families. Tese are all potentially amenable to improvement. Implications for clinical practice or policy • Factors identifed to be independently associated with higher family satisfaction will provide directions for future improvement. • Such baseline data will allow for assessment of the efcacy of future improvement initiatives. Hong Kong Med J 2015;21:435–43 DOI: 10.12809/hkmj144385 SM Lam *, HM So, SK Fok, SC Li, CP Ng, WK Lui, DK Heyland, WW Yan 1 SM Lam *, MB, BS, FHKAM (Medicine) 1 HM So, MN, MSc 1 SK Fok, MN 1 SC Li, RN, MN 1 CP Ng, BSN 1 WK Lui, RN 2 DK Heyland, MSc, MD 1 WW Yan, MB, BS, FHKAM (Medicine) 1 Department of Intensive Care, Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital, Chai Wan, Hong Kong 2 Department of Medicine, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada * Corresponding author: lamsm2@ha.org.hk This article was published on 15 Sep 2015 at www.hkmj.org. intensive care setting where patients often cannot make their own decisions, either due to their illness or to the efect of medications, 5 building a good relationship with the patients’ family is especially important. Furthermore, it has been recognised that families of patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) are at higher risk of developing anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. 6,7 Tey are suddenly subjected to an uncertain outcome ORIGINAL ARTICLE intensive care unit environment. A performance- importance plot identifed the intensive care unit environment and agitation management as factors that required more urgent attention. Conclusions: Tis is the frst intensive care unit family satisfaction survey published in Hong Kong. Although comparable with published data from other parts of the world, the results indicate room for improvement when compared with a Canadian multicentre database. Future directions should focus on improving the intensive care unit environment, agitation management, and communication with families.