Involvement of the family members in caring of patients an acute care setting

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Abstract
Background: Family members are critical partners in the plan of care for patients both in the hospital and at home. Involving the members of the family in acute care can help the nursing staff in emergency. The present study was aimed to find out the role of the family members while caring for the patients admitted in emergency unit of a tertiary care hospital. Materials and Methods: A total of 400 family members of the patients were conveniently selected. Only one member per family was interviewed and their role in taking care of the patient in acute care setting was evaluated. Results: The mean age of patients admitted in acute care setting was 46.6 yrs ± 18.8 with the age range of 18-84 years. Majority (39%) of the patients were in the age group of 31-60 years. More than half of the caregivers of patients were males and 88% of them were first-degree relatives. The major tasks performed by the caregivers during the patient care was communicating with doctors/ nursing staff (98%), cleaning and dressing the patient (94%), feeding the patient (90%), procuring medication and other supplies (88%), administering oral medications (74%), changing position and helping for back care (65%), shifting the patients for investigations (60%), collecting reports (35%) and providing physiotherapy (25%). Conclusions: The results of the study concluded that family involvement in acute care setting can help the nursing staff in taking care of the patient in acute care setting and it also provides the opportunity for preparing them for after care of the patients at home following discharge.

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