Patients and their families are increasingly recognized as an integral part of the intensive care unit (ICU) team, particularly in adult ICUs [1]. From a patient-centered perspective, high-quality ICU patient care is supported through leveraging a patient’s and/or family’s knowledge of the patient’s health, personality, and behaviors; keeping the family/patient informed about the patient’s care via open communication; and including the patient and/or family in the decision-making process [2]. Oftentimes, many patients in the ICU are mechanically ventilated and therefore unable to speak and interact with clinicians on their own behalf [3]. In this context, family members’ involvement and voices take on extra significance as part of the care team and as an advocate for the patient. However, not all family involvement supports a healing care environment for the patient, and not all clinicians take the same approach to including families in the care team [4]. In focused discussions, ICU patients and ICU clinicians illuminate how family members can best be involved to support their loved one, prefer to be involved in care, and impact both the patient’s care directly and the clinicians delivering care.