What are the independent and dependent study variables?
Family presence during invasive procedures and resuscitation
Study problem
What problem was the study conducted to resolve?
A research problem identifies an area of concern when a gap exists in the knowledge needed for nursing practice Family presence (FP) during invasive procedures (IPs) and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is considered a right, obligation, and natural event by some organizations, notably nursing (Blair, 2004). According to a survey cosponsored by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) and the Emergency Nurses Association (ENA) only 5% of U.S. hospitals have written policies on FP during IPs and CPR (Aug 2003). The problem that prompted this study was the need to determine if the presence of family was comforting to the client, distressing to the family members observing the procedure or resuscitation, or uncomfortable for the caregivers and would implementing family presence programs be justifiable The article clearly identified the problem that prompted the research.[Good]
Why is the problem an important one for nursing to study?
Nurses have the opportunity to preserve the wholeness, dignity, and integrity of the family unit from birth to death The benefits identified through research will guide nursing education and assist nurses with supporting FP during IPs and CPR. Through FP nurses are given the opportunity to educate families regarding clients’ conditions and the increased knowledge provide to families can help to lower the risk of potential lawsuits.
Study Purpose
What is the purpose of the study?
The research purpose, derived from the research problem, identifies the goal or aim of the study The purpose of this study is the need to determine if the presence of family was comforting to the client, distressing to the family members observing the IP or CPR, or uncomfortable for the caregivers, and would implementing family presence programs be justifiable.The authors identified the purpose of the study in an overview at the beginning of the article.[Good]
Research questions
What is the main research question?
Research questions are concise, probing statements that include one or more variables or concepts Research questions direct the flow of the study. There was one research question identified in this article. The question presented was, “Is the presence of family comforting to the patient, distressing to the family members observing procedures, or uncomfortable for the caregivers and would the benefits of FP justify implementing family presence programs” (Myers et al., 2000)? The benefits of FP are the concepts or variables explored in this question. The article indicated that clients’ families found the visitation was helpful to them and no psychological effects were suffered. The staff, 96% of nurses and 79% of attending physicians supported FP during IPs and CPR. The article posed the main research question in the overview and was easy to identify. .[Good]
Hypothesis
What is the study hypothesis?
A hypothesis is a formal statement used to predict the outcome of the study. The research findings will either support or reject the hypothesis (Burns & Grove, 2003, p 89). The hypothesis was not stated in this study. This writer thinks an appropriate hypothesis would be, “Implementing family presence programs would be beneficial because family presence during IPs and CPR is comforting to the client, not distressful to family members, and is supported by the caregivers.” The components of a clear hypothesis include the study variables, the population indicated, and a proposed outcome for the study. This study identified the study variables and the population indicated, but did not clearly indicate the expected outcome of the study. With this hypothesis, the goal of the study would be to prove the above statement either true or false.
The type of proposed hypothesis listed above is a causal hypothesis. Causal hypothesis suggest a cause-and-effect relationship between the variables in a study (Burns & Grove, 2003, p 91). The suggestion is that the lack of education and training in the techniques of family presence by health care providers causes a difference in perception of possible benefits of FP during IPs and CPR. [Excellent]
Study variables
What are the independent and dependent study variables?
Variables are characteristics of the persons or objects in a study that may change or vary (Burns & Grove, 2003, p 104). Burns and Grove identify two types of variables as independent and dependent. An independent variable is a treatment or stimulus manipulated by the researcher to cause a change or effect on the dependent variable. A dependent variable is the outcome or response the researcher is looking for. The independent variables in this study were investigator-developed family surveys (FS), health care provider surveys (HCPS), educating staff about the benefits of FP, and the availability of a family facilitator for. The dependent variable or outcome in this study was that the benefits of FP justify implementing family presence programs. By influencing the experiences of health care providers and families by addressing their concerns, the researchers would cause an effect on the dependent variable. The expected effect would be that implementation of family presence programs would be justified.
Conceptual model/Theoretical framework
In what way was this study guided by a conceptual model or theoretical framework?
A theoretical framework is a group of related concepts or theories (Blass, Hayes, Kozier, & Erb, 2002). Nursing theories provide a systematic approach to nursing care. Guidelines developed by the Emergency Nurses Association’s (ENA) “Presenting the Option for Family Presence” guided this study, which focused on justification of implementing a family presence program. According to the ENA’s guidelines, the need for family support and facilitation of the grieving process is the motivation for FP protocol. This study uses the ENA guidelines to explain the need for facilitating the FP in order to fulfill the holistic framework of preserving the wholeness and integrity of the family unit. The study clearly identified the conceptual framework used to guide the research. .[Good]
Review of related literature
In what ways does the literature review support the need for this study?
The review of literature section provides a background for the problem. The literature review identifies the current knowledge of practice problem and the gaps in that knowledge . Sources listed in the literature review are either theoretical or empirical literature Theoretical literature reviews contain models, theories, concept analysis or conceptual frameworks that relates to the problem. An empirical literature review contains published or unpublished studies on the subject