Family experiences up to seven years after a severe traumatic brain injury-family interviews
2022 (English)In: Disability and Rehabilitation, ISSN 0963-8288, E-ISSN 1464-5165, Vol. 44, no 4, p. 608-616Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
Purpose: To explore the experiences of being a family with one member suffering from severe traumatic brain injury (STBI) up to 7 years earlier through narrative family interviews.
Methods: There are few studies where a family as a unit, including persons with STBI, are interviewed together. This study used a family systems research approach following a qualitative interpretative design. Therefore, 21 families with a total of 47 family members were interviewed. Qualitative content analysis was used to reveal categories with sub-categories and a theme.
Results: "From surviving STBI towards stability, through the unknown, into a new everyday life and a new future as a family" characterized the implicit message. The results revealed two categories both with three subcategories. The first category characterized the rapid change from a normal everyday life to one of uncertainty and finally to one of stability, and the second category described how it is to adapt as a family after STBI.
Conclusions: Long-term experiences of STBI show the importance for the whole family of belonging to a context, having a job, and having something to belong to as a way to achieve stability. Families' feelings of loneliness and lack of treatment and support are challenges for professionals when trying to involve families in care and rehabilitation.
IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATIONA
- sense of belonging, having a purpose and a social network are important within families.
- Professionals can provide information and can help to eliminate misunderstandings for individuals with severe traumatic brain injury and their families.
- It is important for rehabilitation professionals to undertake a thorough family assessment.
- This assessment will support families become involved in the process of rehabilitation.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Taylor & Francis, 2022. Vol. 44, no 4, p. 608-616
Keywords [en]
Severe traumatic brain injury, family interviews, long-term perspective
National Category
Nursing
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-173426DOI: 10.1080/09638288.2020.1774668ISI: 000544907700001PubMedID: 32520596Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85087131244OAI: oai:DiVA.org:umu-173426DiVA, id: diva2:1453243
Funder
Region VästerbottenThe Swedish Brain Foundation2020-07-092020-07-092022-07-12Bibliographically approved