title: The focus of family members' functioning in the acute phase of traumatic coma: part one: The initial battle and protecting life.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The identification and description of the basic psychological process linked with the focus of family members' functioning during the acute phase of traumatic coma.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Earlier research learned that hope is a core category in coping with traumatic coma. Hope seems to be the drive to keep family members going and to enable them to fulfil their main task namely protecting. In two articles on the focus of family members functioning, this task is defined and the process linked with it is described.
  
  
  METHODS
  A qualitative approach according to the grounded theory method with constant comparison.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty four in-depth interviews with 22 family members of 16 patients with traumatic coma.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Family members describe the period after the confrontation with traumatic coma as a battle. During this battle, they feel the urge to protect their relative in coma, other family members and themselves. They go through three phases: protecting life, protecting from suffering, protecting what remains to rebuild live. In this article (Part One) we describe the initial battle and the phase of protecting life.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  All relatives go through the three phases. Family members who have already overcome previous set-backs get through the process slightly more quickly and experience less extreme emotions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Understanding the process of protecting in different phases may help health care professionals to do anything in their power to avoid unnecessary suffering, to ease the pain and to support family members in their task of protecting.
authors.affiliation: Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. Sofie.Verhaeghe@Ugent.be
authors.forename: Sofie T L
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Verhaeghe
authors.forename: Florence J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: van Zuuren
authors.forename: Mieke H F
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Grypdonck
authors.forename: Mia S H
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Duijnstee
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Defloor
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D003128:Coma / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology*; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D011368:Professional-Family Relations; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000150:complications*