Presence of relatives during cardiopulmonary resuscitation

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a frequent event. In many cases, especially during prehospital CPR, relatives or family members are present during CPR. The purpose of this work was to explore health care providers' attitudes towards the presence of relatives during CPR and to describe the evidence regarding the impact of the presence of relatives during CPR on relatives and staff-performance as well. Narrative literature review. Health care providers are skeptical about the presence of relatives during CPR. They expect a negative impact on relative's psychological status and staff performance. Relatives perceive their presence during CPR as helpful. It seems to have no negative impact on anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Relatives should be given the opportunity to decide whether they want to be present during CPR. However, specific requirements should be met.