Top Ten Tips Palliative Care Clinicians Should Know About Caring for People with Postintensive Care Syndrome

Authors

• Alice Bottussi, Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
• Jacopo D'Andria Ursoleo, Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
• Donald R. Sullivan, Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, & Critical Care Medicine, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.
• Rachel Kohn, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, the Palliative and Advanced Illness Research Center, Department of Medicine, the Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
• Kimberley J. Haines, Physiotherapy Department, Western Health, Department of Critical Care, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
• Allison J. Applebaum, Brookdale Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
• Sarah Byrne-Martelli, Department of Supportive Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
• Rachel Hadler, Department of Anesthesiology, Emory Critical Care Center, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
• Stephanie Hiser, Department of Health, Human Function & Rehabilitation Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.
• Jennifer M. Maguire, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
• Mallory McCall, Division of Internal Medicine and Palliative Care, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA.
• Ankita Mehta, Department of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, USA.
• Dorothy W. Tolchin, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Mass General Brigham, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
• Eduardo Bruera, Department of Palliative, Rehabilitation and Integrative Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA.
• Sebastiano Mercadante, Pain Relief and Supportive Care, Casa di Cura La Maddalena SpA, Palermo, Italy.
• Benjamin Tolchin, Department of Neurology, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.
• Louis P. Voigt, Department of Anesthesiology, Pain, and Critical Care Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York, USA.
• William E. Rosa, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York, USA.
• Fabrizio Monaco, Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anesthesia and Intensive Care, IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Sant'Orsola, Bologna, Italy.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

3-18-2026

Journal

Journal of palliative medicine

DOI

10.1177/10966218261419634

Keywords

critical illness survivors; intensive care unit; palliative care; physical impairments; postintensive care syndrome; posttraumatic stress disorder

Abstract

Intensive care unit (ICU) mortality rates have substantially declined over the past few decades. Accordingly, there has been an increase in the number of ICU survivors, who are often burdened by long-term sequelae and high morbidity following their discharge. The term postintensive care syndrome (PICS) was first coined in 2012 to describe this constellation of physical, psychological, and cognitive sequelae, which may persist long after acute care hospitalization and may also affect family members. In this context, the timely integration and delivery of palliative care has the potential to alleviate the suffering experienced by both ICU survivors and their families. In this article, an interdisciplinary team presents ten tips to describe PICS and enhance the quality of care for palliative care clinicians caring for people with PICS.

APA Citation

Bottussi, Alice; D'Andria Ursoleo, Jacopo; Sullivan, Donald R.; Kohn, Rachel; Haines, Kimberley J.; Applebaum, Allison J.; Byrne-Martelli, Sarah; Hadler, Rachel; Hiser, Stephanie; Maguire, Jennifer M.; McCall, Mallory; Mehta, Ankita; Tolchin, Dorothy W.; Bruera, Eduardo; Mercadante, Sebastiano; Tolchin, Benjamin; Voigt, Louis P.; Rosa, William E.; and Monaco, Fabrizio, "Top Ten Tips Palliative Care Clinicians Should Know About Caring for People with Postintensive Care Syndrome" (2026). GW Authored Works. Paper 8868.
https://hsrc.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/gwhpubs/8868

Department

Health, Human Function, and Rehabilitation Sciences