First days in intensive care units: A tragedy for families

Resumen

The first days of patients’ hospitalization in intensivecare units are very important for theirfamily members. Therefore, it is necessary to explorethe families’ perceived experiences in order to adoptappropriate nursing care. This qualitative study aimedto explore the perceptions of families in the first days ofhospitalization of their loved ones in intensive care units.This is a conventional qualitative content analysis study.Unstructured interviews were conducted on 26 familymembers of patients hospitalized in the first five days ofhospitalization in intensive care units in two private andtwo public hospitals in the Karaj, Iran. The data analysisled to the formation of three categories: “Overwhelmingturmoil”, “Scary events” and “Acute psychosomatic tensions”.The results indicated that the first days of hospitalizationof patients in the intensive care units encompass apainful tragedy. Findings can be applied as a guide for thenursing assessment of families to help them for a healthytransition of this stressful situation.