On March 12, GNYHA and the United Hospital Fund (UHF) hosted a conference on clinician and patient/family communication at the end of life. The program, which attracted more than 100 participants, provided information regarding end-of-life decision-making to physicians working in the intensive care unit (ICU) and providing palliative care, with a focus on the current landscape in NYS for surrogate decision-making and strategies for communicating effectively with patients and their families. A large portion of the day was spent on building skills and discussing strategies for improving the quality of such communications, specifically with regard to the patient's transition to palliative care and clarifying appropriate goals for care.  
     
Speakers included experts from GNYHA member hospitals, who related case studies and discussed the conceptual, ethical, and operational aspects of providing end-of-life care. In addition, the attendees took part in simulated communications training using typical scenarios that occur in the ICU among patients receiving end-of-life care, their families, and the clinical teams who care for them. 
     
On April 15, GNYHA and UHF will host another full-day critical care program, which will focus on the care of cardiac surgical patients in the ICU.