{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,4]],"date-time":"2026-08-04T23:13:10Z","timestamp":1785885190193,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":21,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,5]],"date-time":"2025-11-05T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1762300800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS One"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\">\n                    <jats:title>Introduction<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Family members of critically ill patients are often required to make complex medical decisions under emotional distress, which may affect their decision-making capacity. It is well known that psychological distress can interfere with cognitive processes that are essential for decision-making; indeed, depression and anxiety constitute some examples of such distress.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec002\">\n                    <jats:title>Aim<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This exploratory study examined psychological outcomes among family members of critically ill patients, specifically depression, anxiety, and stress. It also explored the relationships between these outcomes and decision-making self-efficacy.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec003\">\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The study included 90 family members of intensive care unit patients. Demographic data was collected, and participants completed the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and a measure of decision-making self-efficacy. Correlation analysis was used to analyze the data.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec004\">\n                    <jats:title>Findings<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The results showed participants suffering from varying levels of psychological distress, ranging from moderate to very high levels. To be specific, 61.1% of the respondents reported experiencing moderate to severe depression; furthermore, 67.2% of them suffered from moderate to severe levels of anxiety while 58.3% experienced moderate to severe stress. Statistical analysis revealed there was a significant inverse correlation between levels of distress and decision-making self-efficacy (r\u2009=\u2009\u22120.42, p\u2009&lt;\u20090.001).<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec005\">\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Psychological distress may affect the confidence of family members in medical decision-making. The findings emphasize the need for psychological support, with structured opportunities to aid in the decision-making capacity in critical care settings.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0334554","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,5]],"date-time":"2025-11-05T18:26:26Z","timestamp":1762367186000},"page":"e0334554","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["An exploratory study of psychological and decision-making outcomes among family members of critically ill patients"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"20","author":[{"given":"Marym M.","family":"Alaamri","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shoroug Shaker","family":"Darweesh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sarah 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