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The literature emphasizes the importance of the intensive care unit (ICU) diary to fill the gaps and recover the delusional memories of patients admitted to ICU in order to build the history of their illness. The ICU diary is a measure originally intended to support the severely ill patient, but it would also seem to be useful for family members and carers. According to our analysis of the literature, this study is the first description of the contents of ICU diaries in the Italian context.

The aim of the study was to describe the contents of ICU patients' diaries filled in by their caregivers, in order to explore the experience and significance attributed to the diaries.

A qualitative longitudinal narrative investigation was conducted at an ICU during the period from April 2016 to April 2017 with a sample composed of 32 families.

The participants were caregivers selected through purposive sampling. An …