UB SON PhD Student’s Manuscript Accepted for American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine Publication

UB SON PhD student Kate Chen's manuscript titled "The Experiences of Family Members of Ventilated COVID-19 Patients in the Intensive Care Unit: A Qualitative Study" was accepted for publication in the American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. 

“The acceptance of the paper to the journal promotes the dissemination of the study findings to the public and brings me the potential collaboration opportunity with other researchers,” Chen says.

Chen collaborated with faculty advisor Yu-Ping Chang, associate dean for research and scholarship, on the study.

"Kate has put a lot of work into her research, and it is nice to see her effort culminating with this publication,” Chang says. “This is a great accomplishment for her and further demonstrates how talented the students in our PhD program are. The COVID-19 pandemic has had such an impact, not only on those infected with the disease, but also on their family members. Kate's research on family members of loved ones put on ventilators during the pandemic is very important."

Chen’s research found stress and uncertainty of family members of critically ill patients with COVID-19 due to their inability to feel connected to the patient and informed about care. It suggested that health care providers should assess each individual family’s burden and preferences, and this should include establishing structured, timely, and consistent communication regarding patient care during the pandemic, including early referral to palliative care.