Background: When a patient is admitted to Intensive Care Unit (ICU), various needs occur from his or her family. In particular, as the need for information increases, appropriate information about ICU patients should be provided in an effective and fr...
Background: When a patient is admitted to Intensive Care Unit (ICU), various needs occur from his or her family. In particular, as the need for information increases, appropriate information about ICU patients should be provided in an effective and friendly way to meet their information needs. Recently, mobile devices such as smart phones, tablet PCs are used in the healthcare field and research on how to provide information about ICU patients, using mobile devices has been increased.
Objective: This study aims to explore the needs of nursing information from family members of ICU patients and develop a nursing information template for effective communication with family members of ICU patients, based on their needs.
Methods: This is a methodological research to develop a nursing information template.. The needs for nursing information were explored through literature reviews and interviews with ICU nurses and family members of ICU patients. Based on the information needs, the items of nursing information were organized. The final items of nursing information were selected through content validity index by experts. After a tablet PC-based nursing information template was drafted, it’s content, design and strategy was assessed by conducting a survey with nurses. The nursing information template was finalized, on the basis of the assessed items.
Results: Among 13 nursing information items selected through literature reviews and interviews, 11 items were finalized based on CVI of 0.80 or above. The template was organized to be available on a table PC and its draft for nursing information was developed and easy terms for helping understanding of families with ICU patients. The initially developed template was evaluated by 20 ICU nurses and a total score was 4.13 of 5 points. In particular, scores of contents (4.30± 0.56) and strategies (4.18± 0.79) were high and a score of template design was 3.90. Based on nurse’s evaluation, the font size was increased and duplicate information was merged.
Conclusion: The nursing information template, which was developed in this study, would be a useful tool to satisfy the information needs of family members of ICU patients. Moreover, it is expected to promote participation of families in patient care and improve in an effective way of communication between ICU nurses and families.