Healthcare Providers as Cultural Guests of Patients and Their Loved Ones During the Dual Pandemic of COVID-19 and Racism: Establishing Trust in the ICU (Sci233)

1. Learners will identify cultural barriers to the establishment of trust between patients’ loved ones and the healthcare provider team and integrate methods to reduce cultural barriers. 2. Through this presentation healthcare providers will strengthen ability to understand how to be a cultural guest of patients, and their loved ones, in healthcare settings. In the stressful environment of the intensive care unit (ICU), cultural differences between healthcare providers and patients’ loved ones can prevent the establishment of trust. Healthcare providers can address this barrier by respecting cultural practices utilized as comfort mechanisms by patients and their loved ones. The objective of this research is to determine how healthcare providers can be genuine cultural guests of patients and their loved ones in the ICU setting. We employed a qualitative descriptive design with 22 family caregivers. Semi-structured, audio-recorded phone interviews were conducted between February 2021 and October 2021, with caregivers whose family member had been in the ICU between May 2019 and August 2020. The sample included a majority of female (87%), Black (53%) caregivers with an average age of 53. The research team employed a conventional and directed qualitative content analysis to code transcribed interviews, followed by the development of a formative categorization matrix, and theoretical labeling of the main categories and subcategories. We identify four pillars that facilitate the cultural guest mindset: form genuine connection, build trust, establish expectations, and respect culture. The formation of genuine connection entails healthcare provider investment, specifically by keeping the patient's family regularly updated on the patient's condition. Building trust also necessitates that healthcare providers engage in frequent open communication with the family, while avoiding the use of complex medical jargon. Establishing expectations requires healthcare providers to assess the culture of patients and their loved ones in order to understand how to best support the family's needs. Finally, respect of cultural practices can foster a sense of collaboration with patients and their families, who may feel that the healthcare providers are on an opposing team. Implementing these practices, healthcare providers can provide medical services in a way that complement patients’ culture, enhancing the patient and caregivers’ ICU experience.