Needs of family members of critically ill patients in a Critical Care Unit at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre

Abstract

Fulfillment of the family needs for the critically ill patient in Critical Care Unit should be met by healthcare providers to improve patient’s quality of life. The purpose of this study was to identify the needs of family members of critically ill patients in a Critical Care Unit. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 109 family members of patient hospitalized at the Intensive Care Unit and Coronary Care Units of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC). The modified Critical Care Family Needs Inventory (CCFNI) comprised of 5 domains of family member’s needs: Information, Proximity, Assurance, Comfort and Support. The findings showed that assurance and information needs were the highest with (3.77 ± 0.306); (3.62 ± 0.379), proximity need (3.60 ± 0.415), support need (3.57 ± 0.477) and comfort need (3.55 ± 0.586), respectively. There was significant relationship between respondent’s relationship with family needs of proximity (p = 0.013). This study indicated that there were significant association between respondent’s monthly income and family needs of comfort and support, (p = 0.033) and (p = 0.004). There was also significant association between the gender with comfort need (p = 0.013). In this study, it was observed that information, proximity, assurance, comfort and support were opinioned as their requirements during hospitalization. Hence, it assists in coping while being admitted to Intensive Care Unit and Coronary Care Unit of UKMMC. An educational package and updating patient’s information should be emphasized to enhance the family needs of critically ill patient in the critical care settings.