Poster Presentation
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
9:00 AM - 9:45 AM
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
2:45 PM - 3:30 PM
The study on level of uncertainty and importance of needs for family of patients in intensive care unit
Lin-Lih Chuang, MD, Intensive care unit of Emergency Department, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua City, Changhua Count, Taiwan and Wen-Jiuan Yen, PhD, RN, Nursing, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
| Learning Objective #1: provide individualized care to the patient's family. |
| Learning Objective #2: decrease the patient's family level of uncertainty effectively. |
The purposes of this study are to exam the level of uncertainty and importance of needs for families of patients in ICU. This study was a cross-sectional correlational research design. Total 140 families of the patients in MICU and SICU were recruited in a medical center in Central Taiwan during April to May in 2006. Purposive sampling was performed. Two research instruments, Parent Perception of Uncertainty Scale-Family Member (PPUS-FM), Critical Care Family Needs Inventory (CCFNI) were utilized. The findings of this study are (1) The level of uncertainty can be affected by the age of the family member, gender, education level and the severity of the patient's illness. (2) There is no significant variation between different ICU units and the days of hospitalization, but the "Unpredictability" on PPUS-FM presented a significant change on 1-3 days , 4 to 5 days , and above 8 days of the hospitalization. (3) There is no significant association between the level of uncertainty and the importance of needs for the family. (4) The need category of assurance was ranked as the first priority, followed by receiving the patient's update information, accompanying the patient, support and comfort. (5) There is no difference alone with the family's needs in different ICU units, but the different order on ranking of the needs was found in MICU and SICU. According to the results, the nurses can provide individualized care to the patient's family, and decrease their level of uncertainty effectively.