title: Perception of social support among family caregivers of vegetative patients: A qualitative study.
abstract: A vegetative state (VS) is the probable result after brain damage. After VS patients are discharged from the hospital, the responsibility of caring of them is transferred to their families, which impacts a caregiver's physical and psychological health. Social support as a valuable resource reduces the negative effects of stressful events. This study aimed to explore the perception of social support among family caregivers of VS patients. This study is a part of a larger qualitative study which used the descriptive and qualitative method. Purposeful and theoretical sampling was done, and data was gathered through face-to-face, in-depth interviews. The four categories of "Family, a supporter in all aspects," "Beautiful emanation of the nurse's role," "Revitalization via empathy and companionship," and "Defects in support," were extracted. The primary concern of participants was receiving social support which can facilitate caregiving and coping with difficulties, but there are many shortcomings in supporting these caregivers.
authors.affiliation: Physiology Research Center, Department of Medical Surgical Nursing Education, Razi School of Nursing and Midwifery, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Iran.
authors.forename: Esmat
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Noohi
authors.affiliation: Department of Critical Care Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Hamid
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Peyrovi
authors.affiliation: Razi School of Nursing and Midwifery, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran. Electronic address: imanigoghary@yahoo.ca.
authors.forename: Zahra
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Imani Goghary
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing and Midwifery, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Kerman, Iran.
authors.forename: Majid
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kazemi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018458:Persistent Vegetative State / Q000451:nursing*; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012944:Social Support; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Family caregivers; Qualitative study; Social support; Vegetative state