Family Participation in Bangladesh Hospital Care

Family Caregiver Participation in Hospital Care in a Tertiary Hospital in Bangladesh: a Mixed Methods Study

This mixed methods study aims to understand family care participation in the adult medicine wards of Chattogram Medical College Hospital, Bangladesh. The main questions it aims to answer, from the perspective of the patient, family caregiver, nurse, doctor, ward assistant, and hospital administrator, are:

1. What is the role of the family caregiver in hospital care?
2. What is the perceived effect of family participation in hospital care?
3. What are the barriers and facilitators experienced in family participation?
4. What are suggestions for family participation interventions?

These questions will be answered with three study arms:

1. A prospective observational cohort (population: patients and family caregivers)
2. A time and motion study (population: nurses and doctors)
3. Interviews and focus group discussions (population: patients, family caregivers, nurses, doctors, ward assistants, and hospital administrators)

Prospective Observational Cohort

• Inclusion Criteria

  • Population
  • Patient: Admitted to the ward (in-patient)
  • Family caregiver: caregiver providing care at the bedside of the patient on the ward
  • Environment: Admitted to medicine wards 13, 14 or 16 of Chattogram Medical College Hospital
  • Admission time: Admitted in the last 48 hours
  • Adult: ≥18 years

• Exclusion criteria

  • Admission time: Planned discharge or transfer within the first 24 hours of admission
  • Child: <18 years
  • Previously enrolled in this study arm
  • No consent given

Time and Motion

• Inclusion Criteria

  • Population: Nurses and doctors
  • Environment: Working in the medicine wards 13, 14 or 16 of Chattogram Medical College Hospital

• Exclusion Criteria

  • Previously enrolled in this study arm
  • No consent given

Qualitative (interviews and focus group discussions)

• Inclusion Criteria

  • Population
  • Patient: Admitted to the ward (in-patient)
  • Family caregiver: Caregiver providing care at the bedside of the patient on the ward
  • Health workers: Nurses, doctors and ward assistants
  • Hospital administrator: Managers and professors
  • Environment
  • Patient: Admitted to medicine wards 13, 14 or 16 of CMCH
  • Family caregiver: Caring for their relative on wards 13, 14 or 16 of CMCH
  • Health worker: Working on wards 13, 14 or 16 of CMCH
  • Hospital administrator: Responsible for care delivery on wards 13, 14 or 16 of CMCH

• Exclusion Criteria

  • Population
  • Patient: Unconscious or unable to participate in a conversation
  • Family caregiver: Unable to leave the patient for reasons of safety
  • Health worker: <6 months of work experience on wards 13, 14 or 16 of CMCH
  • Hospital administrator: <6 months in a management role for wards 13, 14 or 16 of CMCH
  • Admission time
  • Patient: Admitted <48 hours
  • Family caregiver: <8 cumulative hours present at patient bedside in last 48 hours
  • Child: <18 years
  • Previously enrolled in this study arm
  • No consent given