'n Orientasieprogram vir gesondheidsorgpersoneel in die intensiewesorg-eenheid ten opsigte van familiele ondersteuning

English: Familial support is important when one considers to nurse the patient and the family as a unit. The nurse can design and implement strategies to assist family members in meeting their needs only when these needs and their relative importance for patients and their family members are accurately assessed. Then the needs of family members will be satisfied completely. Hospitalization for a critical illness is frequently viewed as a crisis situation for the patient and the family. In 1979 it was noted that the following tendency occurred: most of the staff's energy is spent in giving care to the patient and little time is left to help the family deal with the crisis situation they are in. According to the researcher's experience in practice a limitation in the satisfaction of family members' needs in the intensive care unit was noted. Literature also emphasized her observation as it stated that health care workers are not aware of the different important needs that family members experience. Therefore they do not try to satisfy these needs. Discussions with colleagues showed that they felt that their knowledge of the needs of family members is limited. The researcher concluded that health care workers in the intensive care unit are uninformed about the needs and support of family members. The aim of the study is to determine the extent to which familial needs were satisfied before and after implementing an orientation program. The objectives of the study was to: • Determine the extent to which the needs of family members in the intensive care unit were satisfied according to the CCFNI ("Critical Care Family Needs Inventory") before the health care workers have been exposed to an orientation program. • Design an orientation program for health care workers. • Implement an orientation program for health care workers. • Identify additional needs that have not been included in the CCFNI. • Determine the extent to which the needs of family members in the intensive care unit were satisfied according to the CCFNI after the health care workers have been exposed to an orientation program. The researcher used a quasi-experimental pretest-post-test design and the data was obtained by using the surveying method. The research was limited to the family members of patients that was admitted and received treatment in the Multi-disciplinary intensive care units of a private and provincial hospital in Bloemfontein, as well as the health care workers that worked in the specific Multi-disciplinary intensive care units. Data was obtained through group interviews by using a structured questionnaire. The questionnaires existed of two sections. Section A provided biographic information and Section B provided information regarding the needs of family members and the extent to which these needs were satisfied. The orientation program was presented in the form of a workshop to all the health care workers that worked in the specific intensive care units. During the workshop the personnel received information about the needs of family members of critically ill patients. The data obtained from the pre-tests also determined the nature of the workshop. The data was presented by using tables and figures. Explanatory data, namely frequencies and percentages for categorical variables and medians and percentages for continues variables, have been determined for pre and post. The researcher's conclusions were that the health care workers had insufficient knowledge about the needs of family members of critically ill patients. It was also concluded that the hospitals and intensive care units were not fully equipped to meet the needs of family members. According to the data-analysis and conclusions, recommendations were made about the training of students and in service training of health care workers regarding the needs and support of family members. Specific recommendations regarding the implementation of critical care plans for families and the infrastructure of the hospitals and intensive care units were made.