International journal of nursing studies
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Critical illness and subsequent hospitalisation of a relative to an intensive care unit (ICU) can result in many physiological and psychosocial problems for patients and their family members. Caring for the anxiety and frustration of these families is an integral part of critical care nursing. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a needs-based education programme provided within the first 3 days of patients' hospitalisation, on the anxiety levels and satisfaction of psychosocial needs of their families. ⋯ After the needs-based intervention, the experimental group reported significantly lower levels of anxiety and higher levels of satisfaction of family needs than the control group at the post-test. The findings support the effectiveness of providing families of newly admitted critically ill patients, with a needs-based educational intervention to allay anxiety and satisfy immediate psychosocial needs. The formulation of a family education programme should be based on the results of a needs assessment, in order to meet family carers' individual needs.