Effects of Permitting Family Members to Observe CPR

Despite data that suggest benefit to family members from allowing them to observe resuscitations (NEJM JW Emerg Med Mar 15 2013), emergency physicians may be reluctant to do so. In a prospective, cluster-randomized, controlled study involving 15 emergency medical services units in France, researchers compared psychological symptoms at 1 year between family members who were offered the chance to witness an adult resuscitation and those who were not offered the option.

Of 570 family members, 72% were evaluated at 1 year by telephone. Family members in the control group were more likely to experience major depression (31% vs. 23%), complicated grief (36% vs. 21%), and post-traumatic stress disorder-related symptoms (adjusted odds ratio, 1.8).