Psychosocial Needs of the Families With Hospitalized Organ Transplant Patients in an Educational Hospital in Iran

Nurses are required to understand and meet the physiological needs of the family members of the patients hospitalized in transplant wards of the hospitals. Considering the importance of this issue, this study aimed to investigate the psychosocial needs of the families with an organ transplant patient. The study employed a cross-sectional design and was conducted in Afzalipour Educational Hospital affiliated to the Kerman University of Medical Sciences in 2018. The 45-item questionnaire of the psychosocial needs was applied to assess the psychosocial needs of the families with an organ transplant patient, including kidney, liver, and bone marrow. The quota sampling method was used and 230 participants completed the survey. Data were analyzed using descriptive mean and SD and analytical statistics independent t-test, anova, and Pearson's correlation coefficient tests by SPSS 22 (version 22, SPSS, Chicago Inc., IL). The results indicated that the mean scores of psychological needs of families with transplanted patients hospitalized in three wards of bone marrow, kidney, and liver were at a high level (143/16 +/- 12/29). The mean scores of psychosocial needs in the bone marrow transplantation ward (148/60 +/- 8/18) were significantly higher than those of the patients hospitalized in the liver (141/24 +/- 16/41) and kidney (141/25 +/- 11/30) wards. A significant difference was observed among the three wards of the liver, kidney, and bone marrow transplantation with regard to the provided support, information, and proximity. To improve the psychological needs of the family members with patients hospitalized in transplant wards and reduce their mental reactions, they should be provided with more precise information about the patient's treatment procedure.