The Italian Family Satisfaction in the Intensive Care Unit Questionnaire: A Psychometric Evaluation Using the Rasch Model

Navigating post-ICU care: understanding family members' experiences - a qualitative study

Background

Comprehending and addressing the needs of caregivers during the post-intensive care unit (ICU) phase is vital for establishing sustainable support systems and improving the overall quality of life (QoL) for both patients and caregivers.

Objective

To explore the experiences of family members (FMs) caring for loved ones three-months after ICU discharge and their related QoL.

Methods and measures

A qualitative, descriptive research was conducted. Participants were recruited from two general ICUs in an Italian Academic Hospital. Data collection lasted two months and was performed with telephonic interviews led by ICU nurses. Thematic analysis was conducted using a hybrid approach, incorporating both deductive and inductive coding strategies. This process has been facilitated by Atlas.ti software.

Results

Twenty-four FMs participated, representing a diverse range of familial relationships with the patients. Thematic analysis revealed four overarching themes: 1) QoL underwent transformations; 2) Positive emotions laden with significance; 3) Supporting role taken on by a caregiver; and 4) Life's transience through the meaning-making of the illness event. These themes highlighted the multifaceted nature of the caregiving experience.

Conclusions

This study provides valuable insights into the challenges and dynamics faced by FMs following ICU discharge. Findings underscore the importance of addressing environmental challenges, cultivating positive emotions, and strengthening caregiver-patient relationships to enhance the caregiving experience and promote overall QoL. FMs can adapt their personal concepts and reach their full potential by learning to coexist with the demanding role of caregiver and achieve a new level of resilience and fulfillment.

Cultural adaptation and reliability testing of the Chinese version of evidence-based practice knowledge assessment in nursing: A cross-sectional study

Objective

The EKAN is a reliable and validated tool for objectively measuring the evidence-based practice (EBP) knowledge of nurses. Thus, we set out to translate and culturally modify the Evidence-Based Practice Knowledge Assessment in Nursing (EKAN), and then evaluate its validity and reliability among Chinese practicing nurses.

Methods

This cross-sectional study consisted of two phases. The first phase involved translating the EKAN into Chinese (EKAN-Chinese), using a process of forward translation, back translation, review, cultural adjustment as well as a pilot study. The second phase aimed to assess the psychometric properties of the EKAN-Chinese and establish a baseline measure of EBP knowledge among 120 nurses from a large general hospital in Beijing, China. Data were collected from August to November 2022 and analyzed with Rasch software. This study was reported using the cross-sectional STROBE checklist.

Results

The newly translated, EKAN-Chinese was pilot-tested after slight modification of four items without altering the intended meaning. The outfit unweighted mean square was 1.03 (SD = -0.13), the infit weighted mean square was 1.00 (-0.17), and the mean difficulty index ranged from -3.43 to 2.85 according to validity indices. The results of the reliability indices revealed low person reliability (0.49), high item reliability (0.96), moderate person separation index (0.99), and sufficient item separation index (4.71). The mean EKAN-Chinese sum score was 9.8 (max score = 20, SD = 2.9).

Conclusion

The newly translated EKAN-Chinese showed sufficient psychometric evidence to support use in practicing Chinese nurses. The EKAN-Chinese can be used by nurse leaders in China as a potential screening tool to 1) objectively identify nurses who need educational training in evidence-based nursing practice, and 2) gauge the effectiveness of education and training programs to improve EBP knowledge and ultimately, evidence-based care.