Family Structure Assessment Of Patients In Palliative Home Care

Abstract

This study aims to examine the family structure of patients in pallia- tive home care in the light of the Calgary Family Assessment Model (CFAM). This is a qualitative research, conducted in the residences of patients enrolled in the Palliative Care Unit and Pain Treatment (PCUP) of a university hospital located in Recife/Pernambuco, Brazil, in the period from May to July 2014. The sample consisted of five patients enrolled in the PCUP and five family caregivers. Data collection was performed through an interviewing technique using two instruments: the genogram and eco-map. The empirical material was analyzed in the light of the Calgary Model of Family Assessment. The application of the Model demonstrated external family structure relationship with the non-existent neighborhood; support network in diverse health, with very strong relationship with the PCUP highlighting the link with nursing professional; weak relationship concerning Basic Health Unit and strong connection to the church. The obtained data suggest that each researched family has demands to be thought of as focus of nursing care and have faith as a resource for coping with the disease. It follows that the application of CFAM has highlighted the intra-family ties and the relations established with the support networks, signaling strategies to optimize patient care without a therapeutic possibility of cure and their family.