Table 4.
Facilitators for COVID-19 communication identified from peer-reviewed articles.
| Communication Facilitators | ||
|---|---|---|
| Main themes | Subthemes | References |
| Strategize team communication | Designate communication responsibility | [52] |
| Team reflection time | [52,53] | |
| Maintain active engagement with patient situations | [92] | |
| Engage palliative care service | [54] | |
| Integrate technology with patient as a team | [90] | |
| Time and communication | Communicate with family before intubation | [53] |
| Let patient know that more communication is coming | [76] | |
| Prioritize communication | [92] | |
| Accomplish communication with technology | [92] | |
| Patient-centered communication | Invest in relationship with patient | [57,66,68,82,94,104] |
| Adapt technology to share care plan | [64,81,82] | |
| Empathize/acknowledge | [65,66,68,82,88] | |
| Share treatment options openly/honestly and clearly | [69,80,89] | |
| Practice cultural humility | [73] | |
| Align with patient values in decision making | [77,97] | |
| See your patients | [94] | |
| Seek patient privacy | [104] | |
| Family-centered communication | Obtain information needs and preferences from family/communication plan | [53,66,72] |
| Hold family meeting(s) however possible | [54] | |
| Include family by using technology | [64,82] | |
| Empathize/acknowledge | [65,66,82] | |
| Enable family presence in person or with technology by communicating risks and options | [70] | |
| Share reasons for policies about access and PPE | [72] | |
| Practice cultural humility | [73] | |
| Align with family values in decision-making | [77] | |
| Identify substitute decision-maker | [97] | |
| Communication training resources | Vital Talk | [55,58] |
| SPIKES | [74,104] | |
| Attention to eye expression/nonverbals | [59] | |
| Develop and share a question/prompt list to use with patients | [60] | |
| Use interpreters/LEP (Limited English Proficiency) materials/algorithm | [61,63] | |
| Bad News resource | [87] | |
| COVID advance care planning tool, ACP guide | [67,87] | |
| Ask-Tell-Ask | [68] | |
| Rely on words spoken, tone, and silences/ lay terms | [71,88,101] | |
| Strategies to communicate with compassion to team, patient, and family | [75] | |
| 3 Stage Protocol for goals of care | [79] | |
| Checklist for video calls | [84] | |
| PPERV (Preparation, professionalism, empathy, respect, virtual physical exam) | [84] | |
| “Trustful, mindful, relevant, sensitive communication” | [86,95] | |
| What to do/What to say | [91] | |
| ABC (Attend mindfully, Behave Calmly, Communicate Clearly) | [93] | |