Effectiveness and Safety of a Flexible Family Visitation Model for Delirium Prevention in Adult Intensive Care Units: a Cluster-randomized, Crossover Trial (The ICU Visits Study)

A cluster-randomized crossover trial involving adult ICU patients, family members, and ICU professionals will be conducted. Forty medical-surgical Brazilian ICUs with visiting hours \<4.5 h/day will be randomly assigned to either a restrictive family visitation model (RFVM) (visits according to local policies) or a flexible family visitation model (FFVM) (visitation during 12 consecutive hours per day) at a 1:1 ratio. After enrollment and follow-up of 25 patients, each ICU will be switched over to the other visitation model, until 25 more patients per site are enrolled and followed. The primary outcome will be the cumulative incidence of delirium among ICU patients, measured twice a day using the Confusion Assessment Method for the ICU. Secondary outcome measures will include daily hazard of delirium, ventilator-free days at day 7, any ICU-acquired infections, ICU length of stay, and all-cause hospital mortality among the patients; symptoms of anxiety and depression and satisfaction among the family members; and prevalence of symptoms of burnout among the ICU professionals. Tertiary outcomes will include need for antipsychotic agents and/or mechanical restraints, coma-free days at day 7, unplanned loss of invasive devices, and ICU-acquired pneumonia, urinary tract infection, or bloodstream infection among the patients; self-perception of involvement in patient care among the family members; and satisfaction among the ICU professionals.