Factors associated with nurses’ attitudes toward the family involvement in nursing care

Abstract

Background: Family involvement in care increases health gains, and multiple factors influence nurses’ attitudes toward family involvement. Objective: To identify nurses’ attitudes toward family involvement in care and determine the association between nurses’ attitudes and their age, education level, years in the profession, professional category, purpose in life, and symptoms of depression/anxiety. Methodology: Cross-sectional, descriptive-correlational study, carried out 317 nurses from a hospital center in the central region of Portugal. Nurses answered a sociodemographic questionnaire and com-pleted the Families’ Importance in Nursing Care-Nurses’ Attitudes scale, the Mental Health Inventory, and the Purpose in Life Test. Results: Most participants reported supportive attitudes toward family involvement in care. The cor-relations between the variable under study and the associated factors were consistent with the expected. Conclusion: Most participants have supportive attitudes toward family involvement in care. Older nurses, with higher education levels, more years in the profession, higher professional category, a higher sense of purpose in life, and fewer symptoms of depression/anxiety attach more importance to family involvement in nursing care.