Family Members' Psychosocial Support in Palliative Inpatient Care: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Area of Science:

• Palliative Care
• Psychosocial Support
• Family Caregiver Studies

Background:

• Specialist palliative inpatient care aims to support patients and their families.
• Family members' experiences of psychosocial support are vital for holistic care.
• Existing research highlights variability in family support within palliative settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the quality of psychosocial support received by family members during specialist palliative inpatient care.
• To identify specific areas of strength and weakness in the support provided.
• To inform improvements in family-centered palliative care practices.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study design was employed.
• The "Family Involvement Scale-Psychosocial Support in Palliative Inpatient Care" (FIS-PS-InPal) questionnaire was utilized.
• Data were collected from 171 family members across 16 specialized palliative care wards in Finland and analyzed using descriptive statistics.

Main Results:

• Family members generally rated their psychosocial support as close to ideal.
• Psycho-emotional support and support practices were perceived as the strongest aspects of care.
• Informational support was identified as the weakest area, with 19.9% reporting less support than desired.

Conclusions:

• Psychosocial support for families in specialist palliative care is largely adequate.
• There is a clear need to enhance the communication of information to family members.
• Continuous evaluation and tailored implementation of support strategies are essential for optimizing family well-being in palliative care.