Paradoxical perception of humanistic care in the intensive care unit: A qualitative study.
Fateme Hasandoost, Eesa Mohammadi, Mojgan Khademi and 1 others
PMID 36177853WHAT IT FOUND
ICU nurses and families described mutual misunderstanding: families wanted bedside presence and information, but nurses often saw them as disruptive and ignored them.
Nurses reported caring stagnation from workload, yet felt satisfaction when patients improved.
Key findings
01Nurses and family attendants described mutual misunderstanding of roles and needs, and nurses often considered family presence unnecessary or disruptive.
02Nurses described ethical decision-making as complicated by time pressure, emotions, family demands and supervisors' orders, with personal reasoning sometimes replacing professional ethics.
03Nurses described caring stagnation from work stress and perceived neglect of their rights, yet also felt satisfaction when patients improved or families appreciated care.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study was done in one Iranian ICU with limited family visiting, so the themes may not transfer to units with different staffing, culture or visiting policies. Only 4 patients and 4 family attendants were interviewed, so the patient and family perspective rests on a small number of voices. The study reports perceptions and observed behaviours, not measured patient outcomes or whether any change to communication or visiting policy would improve care. The authors acknowledge possible bias in data collection, analysis and reporting.
Declared interests
The article states the authors received no financial support and declared no potential conflicts of interest, while a funding section names Tarbiat Modares University Faculty of Medical Sciences as funder.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the themes as proof that ICU nurses are uncaring or that changing family visiting policy will improve patient outcomes. This is a qualitative study of perceptions in one unit, and it did not test an intervention or measure patient recovery.