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An Exploration of Family Centred Care (FCC) in UK Inpatient Wards

NCT07740369 · Status: RECRUITING · Type: OBSERVATIONAL · Enrollment: 30

Last updated 2026-07-31

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

This qualitative study will explore how family-centred care is understood and experienced in adult inpatient medical wards in the UK. Family-centred care involves including a patient's family in care and discussions where appropriate. Although family involvement can improve communication, emotional support and shared decision-making, it may also create ethical challenges where family wishes differ from the patient's preferences or clinical judgement.

The study will recruit 30 adults at Milton Keynes University Hospital: 10 patients admitted to an internal medicine ward, 10 family members of patients admitted to an internal medicine ward and 10 registered nurses working on an internal medicine ward. Each participant will take part in one semi-structured interview lasting approximately 30-60 minutes, conducted face to face, by telephone or by video call.

The study is based on the expectation that patients, family members and nurses may experience family involvement differently, and that cultural values may influence how family-centred care is applied in practice. The interviews will explore issues including privacy, informed consent, patient autonomy and decision-making. The UK findings will also be compared with findings from an identical study being conducted in Israel to examine how cultural and value-based contexts may affect family involvement in hospital care.

The findings may help identify practical communication approaches for delivering culturally sensitive family-centred care while protecting patients' rights and supporting nurses' professional responsibilities.

Conditions

  • Nursing
  • Family Centered Care
  • Ethics Nursing
  • Family Nursing

Interventions

OTHER

Semi-structured qualitative interview

Each participant will complete one individual semi-structured interview lasting approximately 30-60 minutes. Interviews will be conducted face to face, by telephone or by video call according to participant preference. Open-ended questions will explore experiences and views of family involvement in inpatient care, including issues relating to privacy, informed consent, patient autonomy and decision-making. With consent, interviews will be audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Participants may decline to answer any question or stop the interview at any time.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

    lead OTHER_GOV

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2026-07-24
Primary Completion
2028-06-30
Completion
2028-06-30

Countries

  • United Kingdom

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT07740369 on ClinicalTrials.gov