Nurses' experiences of caring for the relatives of patients in ICU

To date there have been no published qualitative studies looking solely at the experiences of nurses caring for the relatives of patients who are critically ill. This small-scale phenomenological study explores such experiences. Three intensive care units in North West England were included; the nine participants were D grade or above, with a minimum of three months' ICU experience. Each nurse attended a tape-recorded, unstructured interview to discuss caring for relatives. A thematic analysis of the nurses' comments was then performed. Although many of the nurses understood the benefits of performing the care-giver role to families, some nurses felt inadequately prepared. There were also issues about whether they felt supported by colleagues in undertaking this role.