Volume 27, Issue 6 (1-2025)
J Arak Uni Med Sci 2025, 27(6): 353-362 |
Back to browse issues page
Download citation:
BibTeX | RIS | EndNote | Medlars | ProCite | Reference Manager | RefWorks
Send citation to:
BibTeX | RIS | EndNote | Medlars | ProCite | Reference Manager | RefWorks
Send citation to:
Bayat B, Rahzani K, Hekmatpou D. Explaining the Experiences of Families with Patients Affected by COVID-19: A Qualitative Study. J Arak Uni Med Sci 2025; 27 (6) :353-362
URL: http://jams.arakmu.ac.ir/article-1-7837-en.html
URL: http://jams.arakmu.ac.ir/article-1-7837-en.html
1- MSc Student, School of Nursing, Arak University of Medical Sciences, Arak, Iran
2- School of Nursing, Department of Nursing, Arak University of Medical Sciences, Arak, Iran ,k.rahzani@yahoo.com
3- School of Nursing, Department of Nursing, Arak University of Medical Sciences, Arak, Iran
2- School of Nursing, Department of Nursing, Arak University of Medical Sciences, Arak, Iran ,
3- School of Nursing, Department of Nursing, Arak University of Medical Sciences, Arak, Iran
Abstract: (351 Views)
Introduction: The coronavirus crisis is a multidimensional phenomenon that affects even the family. The impact of the situation on the family has been less discussed. Therefore, a qualitative study was conducted to explain families' experiences with patients suffering from COVID-19.
Methods: A qualitative study was conducted with a content analysis approach in 2021. Sampling started with purposive sampling and continued theoretically until information saturation was reached. The primary data collection tool was a semi-structured, in-depth interview in which
10 participants were interviewed. The participants were people from the family of a patient with COVID-19 who, while willing to participate in the study, were either involved in caring for the patient or were worried about the patient's infection. In addition, their patient recovered from Corona and was alive. The interview location was chosen according to the participants' opinion, whether it was at their home or a place that was convenient for them. The interviews were analyzed using the Granheim and Lundman method.
Results: After analyzing the data, initially, 391 codes, 16 subcategories, and finally, five themes were extracted. The five themes that emerged are the experienced symptoms of the disease with two subcategories (symptoms of the onset of the disease and the course of the symptoms), mental and emotional disturbances with seven subcategories (contagion anxiety, death anxiety, fear of the vague nature of the disease, torment of conscience, obsession, emotional suffering, and financial worries), sacrifice in care with two subcategories (suffering care and multiplicity of roles), resilience in the path of care with three subcategories (supportive aspects, reduction of caregiving stress and obtaining information about the disease), Change and evolution in the course of life with two subcategories (individual growth and getting the meaning of life).
Conclusions: According to the present study, after one of the family members gets infected with Corona, the other members have a crisis. The individual, psychological, social, and economic dimensions of the family foundation are facing challenges. It needs the comprehensive support of the family as the first and most important institution of society. Although facing this crisis and accompanying challenges leads to the experience of special suffering, it lays the foundation for personal growth and a better understanding of the meaning of life. Therefore, it can be said that the experience of this crisis is not only from the social aspect but also from the individual aspect, along with tremendous positive and negative developments.
Methods: A qualitative study was conducted with a content analysis approach in 2021. Sampling started with purposive sampling and continued theoretically until information saturation was reached. The primary data collection tool was a semi-structured, in-depth interview in which
10 participants were interviewed. The participants were people from the family of a patient with COVID-19 who, while willing to participate in the study, were either involved in caring for the patient or were worried about the patient's infection. In addition, their patient recovered from Corona and was alive. The interview location was chosen according to the participants' opinion, whether it was at their home or a place that was convenient for them. The interviews were analyzed using the Granheim and Lundman method.
Results: After analyzing the data, initially, 391 codes, 16 subcategories, and finally, five themes were extracted. The five themes that emerged are the experienced symptoms of the disease with two subcategories (symptoms of the onset of the disease and the course of the symptoms), mental and emotional disturbances with seven subcategories (contagion anxiety, death anxiety, fear of the vague nature of the disease, torment of conscience, obsession, emotional suffering, and financial worries), sacrifice in care with two subcategories (suffering care and multiplicity of roles), resilience in the path of care with three subcategories (supportive aspects, reduction of caregiving stress and obtaining information about the disease), Change and evolution in the course of life with two subcategories (individual growth and getting the meaning of life).
Conclusions: According to the present study, after one of the family members gets infected with Corona, the other members have a crisis. The individual, psychological, social, and economic dimensions of the family foundation are facing challenges. It needs the comprehensive support of the family as the first and most important institution of society. Although facing this crisis and accompanying challenges leads to the experience of special suffering, it lays the foundation for personal growth and a better understanding of the meaning of life. Therefore, it can be said that the experience of this crisis is not only from the social aspect but also from the individual aspect, along with tremendous positive and negative developments.
References
1. Wu YC, Chen CS, Chan YJ. The Outbreak of COVID -19: An Overview. J Chin Med Assoc. 2020;83(3): 217-20. pmid: 32134861 doi: 10.1097/JCMA.0000000000000270
2. Huang X, Wei F, Hu L, Wen L, Chen K. Epidemiology and Clinical Characteristics of COVID-19. Arch Iran Med. 2020:23(4);268-71. pmid: 32271601 doi: 10.34172/aim.2020.09
3. COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic. Availablr from: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
4. Aghahosseini SS. Lived experiences of patients recovered from Covid-19: An interpretive phenomenological study [in Persian]. Journal of Hayat. 2022;27(4):374-86.
5. Okati N, Abdekhodaie Z. The lived experience of adolescents from COVID-19 and Quarantine during the first and second peak of the pandemic [in Persian]. J Clin Psychol. 2021;13(Special Issue 2):147-15. doi: 10.22075/jcp.2021.22550.2075
6. Dong XY, Wang L, Tao YX, Suo XL, Li YC, Liu F, et al. Psychometric properties of the anxiety inventory for respiratory disease in patients with COPD in China. Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis. 2016;12:49-58. pmid: 28053516 doi: 10.2147/COPD.S117626
7. Ryu S, Chun BC, Korean Society of Epidemiology 2019-nCoV Task Force Team. An interim review of the epidemiological characteristics of 2019 novel coronavirus. Epidemiol Health. 2020;42:e2020006. pmid: 32023775 doi: 10.4178/epih.e2020006
8. Feder T, McAndrew S, O’Brien D, Taylor M. Cultural consumption and COVID-19: evidence from the Taking Part and COVID-19 Cultural Participation Monitor surveys. Leisure Studies. 2022;42(1):38-55. doi: 10.1080/02614367.2022.2088831
9. Rabie Siahkali S, Pourmemari M H, Khaleghdoost Mohammadi T, Askandari F, Avazeh A. Study on effective factors on patients' family members anxiety in intensive care units [in Persian]. J Adv Med Biomed Res. 2010;18(70):91-10.
10. RabieSiahkali S, Avazeh A, Eskandari F, Khalegh doost Mohamadi T, Mazloom S, Paryad E. A survey on psychological and environmental factors on family anxiety of the hospitalized patients in intensive care units [in Persian]. Iranian Journal of Critical Care Nursing. 2011;3(4):175-80.
11. Bahrami F, Islami M, Moshtagh Eshgh Z, Fesharki M. Effects of programmed education on stress of family careers with a relative in on intensive care unit of Isfahan University Medical Sciences hospitals during 2009 [in Persian]. Journal of Rafsanjan. Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedical 2009;3(4):18-24.
12. Davidson JE. Family-centered care: meeting the needs of patients’ families and helping families adapt to critical illness. Critical Care Nurse. 2009; 29(3):28-34. pmid: 19487778 doi: 10.4037/ccn2009611
13. Shafiee F, Shariatmadar A, Farahbakhsh K. Investigating lived experiences of psychological stresses of cancerous children and their families at different stages of the disease [in Persian]. Health Psychology. 2019;8(31):119-38. doi: 10.30473/hpj.2019.41705.4094
14. Andrade C, Gillen M, Molina JA, Wilmarth MJ. The Social and Economic Impact of Covid-19 on Family Functioning and Well-Being: Where do we go from here? J Fam Econ Issues. 2022;43(2):205-12. pmid: 35669394 doi: 10.1007/s10834-022-09848-x
15. McAuliffe R, O'Connor L, Meagher D. Parents' experience of living with and caring for an adult son or daughter with schizophrenia at home in Ireland: a qualitative study. J Psychiatr Ment Health Nurs. 2014;21(2):145-53. pmid: 23593964 doi: 10.1111/jpm.12065
16. Wildemuth BM. Qualitative Analysis of Content In: Wildemuth BM. Editor. Applications of Social Research Methods to Questions in Information and Library Science. London, UK: Libraries Unlimited; 2009. p. 1-12.
17. Hsieh HF, Shannon SE. Three approaches to qualitative content analysis. Qualitative Health Research. 2005;15(9):1277-88. pmid: 16204405 doi: 10.1177/1049732305276687
18. Graneheim UH, Lundman B. Qualitative content analysis in nursing research: concepts, procedures and measures to achieve trustworthiness. Nurse Educ Today. 2004;24(2):105-12. pmid: 14769454 doi: 10.1016/j.nedt.2003.10.001
19. Enworo OC. Application of Guba and Lincoln's parallel criteria to assess trustworthiness of qualitative research on indigenous social protection systems. Qualitative Research Journal. 2023;23(4):372-84.
20. Abolfathi A, Mehrabi F, Lotfi Sheikhani A, Mirzaei G R, Moslemi A, Sohrabi R. Demographic characteristics, clinical symptoms, and radiological features in patients with COVID-19 in Iran. JCCNC. 2020;6(3):163-74. doi: 10.32598/JCCNC.6.3.303.1
21. Asgari M, Choubdari A, Skandari H. Exploring the life experiences of people with Corona Virus disease in personal,family and social relationships and Strategies to prevent and control the psychological effects. Counseling Culture and Psycotherapy. 2021;12(45):33-52. doi: 10.22054/qccpc.2020.53244.2453
22. Wang C, Horby PW, Hayden FG, Gao GF. A novel coronavirus outbreak of global health concern. Lancet. 2020;395(10223):470-3. pmid: 31986257 doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30185-9
23. Huang X, Wei F, Hu L, Wen L, Chen K. Epidemiology and clinical characteristics of COVID-19. Arch Iran Med. 2020;23(4):268–71. pmid: 32271601 doi: 10.34172/aim.2020.09
24. Bagheri Sheikhangfata F, Sadeghi Choukami A. Intellectual-practical obsession during the 2019 Corona Virus Pandemic (COVID-19): Letter to the Editor [in Persian]. J Shahid Sadoughi Univ Med Sci. 2020;28(6):2700-4. doi: 10.18502/ssu.v28i6.4149
25. Gharedaghi A, Masoumi Ala S. Qualitative study of lived experiences of disengaged and connected families in coping with quarantine during the prevalence of COVID-19 [in Persian]. Counseling Culture and Psycotherapy. 2021;12(45):47-82. doi: 10.22054/QCCPC.2020.53015.2441
26. Mihashi M, Otsubo Y, Yinjuan X, Nagatomi K, Hoshiko M, Ishitake T. Predictive factors of psychological disorder development during recovery following SARS outbreak. Health Psychol. 2009;28(1):91-100. pmid: 19210022 doi: 10.1037/a0013674
27. Ebrahimpour Mouziraji Z, Sanagoo A, Jouybari L. Lived experiences of a family with a patient with schizophrenia [in Persian]. IJPN. 2021;9(5):99-109.
28. Kolagari S, Zagheri Tafreshi M, Rassouli M, Kavousi A, Kolagari S. Nursing teachers’ perception of role strain: a qualitative study [in Persian]. J Res Dev Nurs Midw. 2015;12(1):64-75.
29. Karimirad M R, Seyedfatemi N, Noghani F, Amini E, Kamali R. Resiliency family caregivers of people with mental disorders in Tehran [in Persian]. IJNR. 2018;13(1):57-63. doi: 10.21859/ijnr-13018
30. Cheraghi M, Kaffashi M, Pirahary N, Baghaei Sarabi A, Kashani M. sociological explanation of resilience of women in Tehran in the face of COVID-19 disease [in Persian]. Journal of Iranian Social Studies. 2020;14(2):59-82. doi: doi.org/10.22034/jss.2020.243854
31. Pashaei F, Taleghani F, Tawakkel K, Rezaei A. Family experiences from caregivering of patient with coronary artery bypass graft surgery: a qualitative study [in Persian]. IJNR. 2010;5(16):61-71.
32. Mousavi MS, Rahzani K, Pou DH. Experiences of nurses diagnosed with COVID-19: a qualitative study. J Caring Sci. 2024;13(3):180-7. pmid: 39624608 doi: 10.34172/jcs.33414
33. Pourshahriar H, Dindoost M, Baharshanjani S. The difference between the lived experience of healthy spouses and mourning spouses during the corona virus epidemic [in Persian]. Journal of Research in Psychological Health. 2021;14(4):1-18. doi: 10.52547/rph.14.4.1
Send email to the article author
| Rights and permissions | |
 |
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. |
