Indispensable yet invisible: A qualitative study of the roles of carers in infection prevention in a South Indian hospital

Surendran, Surya, Castro-Sanchez, Enrique, Nampoothiri, Vrinda, Joseph, Shiny, Singh, Sanjeev, Tarrant, Carolyn, Holmes, Alison ORCID: 0000-0001-5554-5743 and Charani, Esmita ORCID: 0000-0002-5938-1202 (2022) Indispensable yet invisible: A qualitative study of the roles of carers in infection prevention in a South Indian hospital. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES, 123. pp. 84-91.

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Abstract

<h4>Objectives</h4>We investigated the roles of patient carers in infection-related care on surgical wards in a South Indian hospital from the perspective of healthcare workers (HCWs), patients, and their carers.<h4>Methods</h4>Ethnographic study included ward-round observations (138 hours) and face-to-face interviews (44 HCWs, 6 patients/carers). Data (field notes, interview transcripts) were coded in NVivo 12 and thematically analyzed. Data collection and analysis were iterative, recursive, and continued until thematic saturation.<h4>Results</h4>Carers have important, unrecognized roles. At the study site, institutional expectations are formalized in policies, demanding a carer to always accompany in-patients. Such intense presence embeds families in the patient care environment, as demonstrated by their high engagement in direct personal (bathing patients) and clinical care (wound care). Carers actively participate in discussions on patient progress with HCWs, including therapeutic options. There is a misalignment between how carers are positioned by the organization (through policy mandates, institutional practices, and HCWs expectations), and the role that they play in practice, resulting in their role, though indispensable, remaining unrecognized.<h4>Conclusion</h4>Current models of patient and carer involvement in infection prevention and control are poorly aligned with sociocultural and contextual aspects of care. Culture-sensitive infection prevention and control policies which embrace the roles that carers play are urgently needed.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Patient and carer role, Family-centered care, Family involvement, Infection Prevention and Control practices, Low- and middle -income country
Divisions:	Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Systems, Molecular and Integrative Biology
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	17 Aug 2022 14:29
Last Modified:	28 Feb 2023 01:45
DOI:	10.1016/j.ijid.2022.08.011
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3161488