The lived experiences of family members of Covid-19 patients admitted to intensive care unit: A phenomenological study.
Davide Bartoli, Francesca Trotta, Silvio Simeone and 6 others
PMID 34428738WHAT IT FOUND
Family members of ICU patients described fear, detachment, waiting for phone updates, guilt, and loneliness when visitation bans kept them from comforting relatives.
These are themes from 14 family members, not evidence that any communication method helps.
Key findings
01Five themes emerged from the interviews: fear, detachment, life on standby, family-related loneliness in the ICU, and unexpected events.
02Fear was linked to uncertainty about the relative's condition, imagined ICU scenes, and media or acquaintances' stories.
03Visitation restrictions were linked to detachment, and families described waiting for phone updates and feeling life was on standby.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only 14 family members from one Italian hospital were studied, and the authors say the results cannot be generalized. Most participants were women (86%), so the findings may reflect female family members' experiences. The study took place under strict visitor restrictions, so it may not apply when families can visit. It reports themes, not a tested intervention, so it cannot show that communication methods improve outcomes. Field notes were limited because only what was visible on camera could be recorded. The paper reports 16 transcribed interviews but a sample of 14 participants.
Declared interests
Authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these themes as evidence that phone updates, video calls, or visitation policies reduce family distress. This was a small qualitative study of 14 family members' experiences, not a tested intervention.