The family of the trauma victim

Emergency room and trauma unit work offers unique challenges to the nurse, both professionally and personally. One of these challenges is understanding and dealing with the behavior of victims' families. Some of the factors that impact on the behavior of families include (1) the sudden and unpredictable nature of trauma; (2) the nature of the relationship of the specific family member and the trauma victim; (3) the issues of responsibility, anger, and guilt; (4) religious beliefs; and (5) trauma sequelae. The development of organ and tissue donor programs and of psychotraumatology as ways to help ease the plight of trauma victims' families are also discussed.