A Nurse-Led Family Support Intervention for Families Living With Cancer: An Experience-Based Co-Design Study.

Area of Science:

• Oncology Nursing
• Patient and Family Support Interventions
• Qualitative Research Methods

Background:

• Cancer profoundly impacts not only patients but also their family members.
• Existing oncology care models may not fully address the holistic needs of families facing cancer.
• A structured, co-designed intervention is needed to enhance family support in cancer care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To co-design a nurse-led family support intervention for patients with cancer and their family members.
• To ensure the intervention is aligned with the needs and expectations of patients and families.
• To foster the feasibility of the intervention in clinical practice.

Main Methods:

• Employed the Experience-Based Co-Design (EBCD) method in a hospital setting.
• Involved nurses, patients, and family members throughout the eight-step EBCD process.
• Utilized observations, interviews, feedback, and co-design events to gather insights.

Main Results:

• Identified four key themes: 'Cancer: a family affair,' 'Needs of patients and families,' 'Trust-based nurse-family relationship,' and 'Barriers/facilitators to family-oriented care.'
• Stakeholders identified critical areas for intervention: family support, communication, emotional expression, and trust.
• Developed the Family CARE-ON intervention with three core components: Engaging, Supporting, and Empowering.

Conclusions:

• The Experience-Based Co-Design methodology effectively engaged stakeholders to develop a family support intervention in oncology.
• The co-designed intervention, Family CARE-ON, is grounded in the experiences and perspectives of those affected by cancer.
• Further research is required to evaluate the intervention's feasibility, effectiveness, implementation, and scalability.