Communication is considered an important variable in the care of critical patients and their families, whose difficulty concerning communication is expressed in the literature. The purpose of this survey was to verify what is considered adequate communication with the nursing team in the perception of the critical patient's family. This is an exploratory and field study carried out at the Intensive Care Unit of the University of São Paulo's Hospital Universitário. The population surveyed was comprised of 13 relatives of critical patients. The data was collected in November of 2003 and analyzed according to Bardin proposal. Communication was considered adequate when it was a means for information - the information was clear and objective, doubts were clarified, orientation was provided and communication was a form of humanizing health care - and there was verbal communication even when the patient was sedated, with somebody as a reference whom the relatives could resort to.
Comunication; Professional family relations; Family; Nursing team; Intensive care units