Code Status Discussions in Muslim ICU Patients: Insights Into Physician-Family Communication

This observational study aims to explore the real-time experiences, perceptions, and challenges faced by intensive care unit (ICU) physicians during goals-of-care discussions-specifically Do Not Attempt Resuscitation (DNAR) and end-of-life decision-making conversations-with families of critically ill patients in a Muslim-majority healthcare setting.

The study seeks to identify factors that influence whether a DNAR decision is reached after physician-family discussions, and how physician experience, family dynamics, religious perspectives, and institutional support affect communication outcomes and care transitions.

Participants will include ICU physicians (residents, fellows, and consultants) who routinely conduct DNAR discussions as part of clinical care. After each discussion, physicians will complete a brief structured questionnaire about their perceptions of the interaction, family emotions, and decision outcomes. These responses will be anonymously linked to limited, de-identified patient-level data (e.g., diagnosis, ICU course, and outcome) extracted retrospectively from the electronic medical record.

No patients or family members will be contacted directly. Data collection will occur prospectively over two years at King Faisal Specialist Hospital \& Research Centre-Jeddah.

Findings from this study are expected to provide culturally grounded insights that inform physician training, enhance family-centered communication, and guide policy development for DNAR and end-of-life discussions in Muslim-majority intensive care units.