Addressing disruption in family life: exploration of the perceived needs of the families of patients hospitalized in critical care units in Iran.

Abstract

The stress faced by a family member impacts the whole family. Disease is a stressor that creates crises within families. This study explores the perceived needs of the families of hospitalized patients in critical care units in the city of Arak, Iran. This study used a qualitative design and a content analysis approach. After purposeful sampling, semistructured interviews were held with 16 participants. Using constant comparative analysis, one main theme and eight subthemes emerged from the data. The main theme was "addressing the disruption in family life." The subthemes were "not being fully informed," "not receiving empathy," "feeling insecure," "being mentally unstable," "being concerned about their patient's future," "being dissatisfied with the lack of facilities for the families of patients," "dealing with financial problems," and "having turbulence intrude on family life." The findings of this study underscore that it is important for medical teams to carefully identify and attend to the needs of the family caregivers of hospitalized patients to reduce the disruptive impact of hospitalization on family life.