Enhancing Palliative Care in ICU

NCT ID: NCT06605079

Last Updated: 2025-09-30

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

2040 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2024-10-10

Study Completion Date

2027-08-31

Brief Summary

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The aim of this study is to reduce the suffering in intensive care through palliative care consultations.

Detailed Description

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This project investigates the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of palliative care consultations in the Intensive care unit. Charité will implement the Working Package 2 "Europe-wide harmonized and recommended palliative care practice for ICU" of the approved HORIZON funding application EPIC, to which this ethics application refers.

An accompanying anonymous employee survey (doctors/nurses) is conducted once in the intervention phase and once in the control phase in all study centers (see secondary endpoints 57-68 and 71).

Conditions

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Palliative Care

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

SEQUENTIAL

Controlled, cluster-randomized, non-blinded, study in a stepped-wedge design with cross-over month.
Primary Study Purpose

PREVENTION

Blinding Strategy

NONE

Study Groups

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Intervention

Intensive care unit patients in the intervention phase.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Complex intervention

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

A complex intervention is carried out in the intensive care unit. This includes:

* telemedical consultations by specialized palliative care experts from external institutions for the respective hospital staff
* the training of hospital staff in the intensive care unit in basic palliative care and
* the use of checklists for the early identification of eligible patients and the structured recording of palliative care needs.

The efficacy and cost-effectiveness of the complex intervention will be investigated using a controlled clinical trial in a cluster-randomized controlled design. In addition, as part of the multicenter clinical study in WP 2 staff, patients and relatives will also be surveyed.

Control

Intensive care unit patients with routine treatment in the control phase.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Routine treatment

Intervention Type OTHER

No complex intervention is established, just routine procedures.

Interventions

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Complex intervention

A complex intervention is carried out in the intensive care unit. This includes:

* telemedical consultations by specialized palliative care experts from external institutions for the respective hospital staff
* the training of hospital staff in the intensive care unit in basic palliative care and
* the use of checklists for the early identification of eligible patients and the structured recording of palliative care needs.

The efficacy and cost-effectiveness of the complex intervention will be investigated using a controlled clinical trial in a cluster-randomized controlled design. In addition, as part of the multicenter clinical study in WP 2 staff, patients and relatives will also be surveyed.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Routine treatment

No complex intervention is established, just routine procedures.

Intervention Type OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Patients in ICU who can give consent and those who can not (via their authorized representative or legal guardian, also possible with delayed consent)
* From 18 years
* The leading cause of critical illness is not cancer
* New admission on the participating ICU \> 72h
* Assessment of the need for palliative care by the in-charge physi-cian of the ICU, because (1) there is a significant disagreement about ICU treatment or (2) because the physician considers ther-apy limitations for the patient or (3) the physician considers a benefit from specialized PC consultation for ICU physician, nurse, or patient or family.


\- At least one relative(s) of a patient. This may or may not be the legal representative, depending on national legislation.


* Employed on the ITS as a doctor/nurse
* Employed in the clinical center as a member of the palliative care consultation service

Exclusion criterion Refusal to participate

Exclusion Criteria

\- Patient is moribund and is expected to die within the next 24h

Study cohort relatives:


* Refusal by the relative
* Refusal of the patient to participate in the intervention study
* \<18 years of age

Cohort of employees:
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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European Commission

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Charite University, Berlin, Germany

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Claudia Spies

Head of the Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine,Charité- University Berlin

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Claudia Spies, MD, Prof.

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Charité-University Medicine (Berlin, Germany)

Martin Neukirchen, MD

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Germany

Jochen Dutzmann, MD

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

University Medicine Halle, Germany

Spyros Mentzelopoulos, MD, Prof.

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

Katerina Rusinova, MD

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Charles University in Prague, Italy

Akiva Nachshon, MD

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel

Edoardo de Robertis, MD, Prof.

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

University Of Perugia

Locations

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ICU General Resuscitation (RES UP), General University hospital

Prague, , Czechia

Site Status RECRUITING

ICU General Resuscitation (RES2)

Prague, , Czechia

Site Status RECRUITING

ICU Metabolic, General University hospital

Prague, , Czechia

Site Status RECRUITING

Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (CCM/CVK),Charité - University Medicine Berlin

Mitte, State of Berlin, Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine (CCM/CVK),Charité - University Medicine Berlin

Wedding, State of Berlin, Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

CARITAS Klinik Maria Heimsuchung

Berlin, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Charité - Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine CBF

Berlin, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care Medicine | CVK, Charité - University Berlin

Berlin, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Evangelisches Krankenhaus Hubertus

Berlin, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Unfallkrankenhaus Berlin

Berlin, , Germany

Site Status WITHDRAWN

Medical and Neurological Intensive Care Unit, University Hospital of Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Neurosurgical and Traumatological ICU ZI13, University Hospital of Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Surgical Intensive Care Unit CIA1/CIB1, University Hospital of Düsseldorf

Düsseldorf, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Universitätsklinikum Halle (Saale): Klinik für Innere Medizin III

Halle, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Johanna-Etienne Hospital Neuss, Interdisciplinary ICU

Neuss, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Ev. Krankenhaus Paul-Gerhardt-Stift Wittenberg:Angiologie und Kardiologie

Wittenberg, , Germany

Site Status WITHDRAWN

Department of Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital of Heraklion

Heraklion, Crete, Greece

Site Status RECRUITING

Department of Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital of Patras

Pátrai, Rio, Greece

Site Status RECRUITING

Department of Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital of Alexandroupolis

Alexandroupoli, , Greece

Site Status RECRUITING

Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit of the Onassis Cardiac Surgery Center

Athens, , Greece

Site Status RECRUITING

Department of Intensive Care Medicine, Alexandra General Hospital

Athens, , Greece

Site Status RECRUITING

Department of Intensive Care Medicine, Evaggelismos General Hospital

Athens, , Greece

Site Status RECRUITING

Department of Intensive Care Medicine, University Hospital of Ioannina

Ioannina, , Greece

Site Status RECRUITING

University Hospital of Larissa, Critical Care Department

Larissa, , Greece

Site Status RECRUITING

General Intensive Care Unit, Hadassah Medical Organisation

Jerusalem, , Israel

Site Status RECRUITING

The Coronary Care Intensive Care Unit, Hadassah Hospital, Ein Kerem

Jerusalem, , Israel

Site Status RECRUITING

The Neurosurgical Intensive Care Unit, Hadassah Hospital, Ein Kerem

Jerusalem, , Israel

Site Status RECRUITING

S.C. Anestesia e Rianimazione 1 - Terapia Intensiva Cardiochirurgica, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria S. Maria della Misericordia

Perugia, , Italy

Site Status WITHDRAWN

S.C. Anestesia e Rianimazione 2 - Terapia Intensiva, Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria S. Maria della Misericordia

Perugia, , Italy

Site Status RECRUITING

UOC di Anestesia e Rianimazione Cardio Toraco Vascolare dell'AOU San Giovanni di Dio e Ruggi d'Aragona "Scuola Medica Salernitana", Salerno University Hospital

Salerno, , Italy

Site Status RECRUITING

S.C. Anestesia - Rianimazione Azienda Ospedaliera Santa Maria - Terni

Terni, , Italy

Site Status WITHDRAWN

Countries

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Czechia Germany Greece Israel Italy

Central Contacts

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Claudia Spies, MD, Prof.

Role: CONTACT

+4930450551102

Other Identifiers

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EPIC

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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