Benefits of Chinese family caregivers of patients with urostomy: a qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Family caregivers, also known as informal caregivers, are critical for the home care of patients with urostomy. The present study aimed to investigate the benefits of family caregivers in China while taking care of patients with urostomy from a positive perspective.

METHODS: A qualitative research design was adopted, with a thematic analysis. The qualitative research software NVivo was used for data analysis. Twenty-two family caregivers of urostomy patients participated in an in-depth interview for 60-90 min. A qualitative analysis was performed using a thematic approach in accordance with the six-stage thematic analysis process reported by Braun and Clarke (2006).

RESULTS: The following four benefits were identified: mastering knowledge and skills, promoting self-growth, establishing close family ties, and changing the way of life. Among these four themes, 11 sub-themes were constructed by coders.

CONCLUSIONS: This study provides new insights into intervention measures for family caregivers of patients with urostomy, which could play an important role in developing the overall model of family-centered nursing.