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Transfer stress and medical intensive care patients and family members
1Faculty of Nursing, University of Manitoba, Canada
Objective:
To explore the phenomenon of transfer stress in medical intensive care (MICU) patients and family members.
Design:
Descriptive study using a cross-sectional survey.
Setting:
Two university-affiliated tertiary care centres in western Canada.
Participants:
Convenience sample of 53 patients and 35 family members who were within 48 hours of having experienced transfer from MICU.
Instruments:
Perception of transfer as a stressor scale and information received related to transfer survey.
Results:
Over 75% of MICU patients and family members experienced moderate to severe transfer stress. Both patients and family members reported receiving limited information related to transfer from MICU. The amount of information received did not correlate significantly with the level of transfer stress in patients or family members.
Conclusion:
Transfer stress frequently occurs in MICU patients and family members and should be an area of concern for health care professionals.
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