Intensive care nurses' encounters with multicultural families in Norway: an exploratory study

Area of Science:

• Nursing
• Sociology
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Multicultural families represent a growing demographic in Norway.
• Critical illness in a family member can induce a crisis, necessitating family presence.
• Nurses encounter challenges in caring for culturally diverse patients due to language and contextual factors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore nurses' perceptions of interactions with multicultural families in intensive care units (ICUs).
• To identify challenges and stressors faced by nurses in these encounters.

Main Methods:

• Descriptive exploratory qualitative design with a retrospective focus.
• Data collected from three multistage focus groups involving 16 ICU nurses.
• Interpretive content analysis used for data analysis.

Main Results:

• A central theme identified was 'Cultural diversity and workplace stressors'.
• This theme encompassed categories: 'impact on work patterns', 'communication challenges', 'responses to crises', and 'professional status and gender issues'.
• Nurses reported ambiguous perceptions, citing linguistic, cultural, and ethnic differences as sources of stress.

Conclusions:

• Nurses' experiences with multicultural families in ICUs are complex, marked by interactional difficulties.
• Linguistic and cultural differences contribute significantly to nurse stressors.
• Nurses aim to enhance their knowledge of diverse cultures and religions to mitigate challenges.