A Study to assess the Needs of the Family Members of Patients Admitted in Intensive Care Unit and to Compare these with the Nurses’ Perception in Selected Hospitals of Karnataka State

The admission of a patient into a Intensive Care Unit is often a frightening and stressful experience for the family members. The purpose of this study was to assess the needs of the family members of ICU patients and the nurses’ perception of these needs. A descriptive survey was undertaken and data was collected using structured questionnaires from a sample of 75 family members of ICU patients and 75 nurses working in ICUs of Kasturba Hospital, Manipal. The top five needs of the family members identified were: to be assured that the best care is given to my patient, to receive information about the patient's progress, to know exactly what is being done for the patient, to know the expected outcome and to have questions answered honestly. The family members identified the Cognitive needs as the most important needs followed by Emotional needs. They gave the least preference to their own Personal or Practical needs. The nurses were able to perceive that the Cognitive needs were the most important to the family members followed by the Emotional needs. The nurses were able to identify 4 out of the top 5 needs of family members. However the mean score of the nurses’ perception of the family members needs were lower than that of the family members needs score (22.91 vs 28.09). Hence it is of crucial importance that the nurses identify the needs of the family members accurately in order to meet these needs.