Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 13, 2026

Involving Individuals with Developmental Language Disorder and Their Parents/Carers in Research Priority Setting
Published on: June 6, 2020
Participation and support in intensive care as experienced by close relatives of patients: a phenomenological study
Helen Blom1, Christina Gustavsson, Annelie Johansson Sundler
1Department of Intensive Care Unit, Skaraborg Hospital, Skövde, Sweden.
Aim:
The aim of this study was to explore participation and support as experienced by close relatives of patients at an intensive care unit (ICU).
Method:
This study used the phenomenological approach as developed by Dahlberg et al. (2008) as a method for reflective lifeworld research. Seven close relatives of critically ill patients cared for at an ICU were interviewed. The data were analysed with a focus on meanings.
Results:
Being allowed to participate in the care of critically ill patients at an ICU is important for close relatives to the patients. Their experiences can be described as having four constituents: participation in the care of and being close to the patient; confidence in the care the patient receives; support needed for involvement in caregiving; and vulnerability.
Conclusion:
Participation with and support from health-care professionals are important for the relatives' well-being and their ability to contribute to the patients' care. Health-care professionals, especially critical care nurses, need to create an atmosphere that invites relatives to participate in the care provided at an ICU.
More Related Videos
10:38Observational Study Protocol for Repeated Clinical Examination and Critical Care Ultrasonography Within the Simple Intensive Care Studies
Published on: January 16, 2019
06:04Objective Nociceptive Assessment in Ventilated ICU Patients: A Feasibility Study Using Pupillometry and the Nociceptive Flexion Reflex
Published on: July 4, 2018
Related Concept Videos
Techniques of therapeutic communication I: Active Listening, Sharing Observations, Validation, and Using Touch
Therapeutic communication is not the same as social interaction. Social interaction has no goal or purpose and consists of casual information sharing, whereas therapeutic communication has a plan or purpose for the conversation. Therapeutic...
Patient-centered Care
Continuing Care
Endoscopic Studies II: Thoracocentesis
Description
Excess pleural fluid or air may accumulate in some respiratory disorders in the thoracic cavity. To treat pleural effusion, a physician conducts thoracentesis by carefully piercing the chest wall and entering...
Restorative Care
Acute Respiratory Failure-IV