Anxiety levels of spouses of patients in critical care units with restricted versus unrestricted visiting hours

Abstract

The purpose of th.is study was to explore whether the anxiety levels of spouses of critically ill patients differed in an environment of restricted versus unrestricted visiting schedules. Two ICUs in a 2 2 5-bed community hospital in the Southeastern United States provided the setting for this study. The sample consisted of 60 spouses of critically ill patients: 30 spouses who followed a restricted visiting schedule and 30 spouses who followed an unrestricted visiting schedule. The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and a Demographic Data Questionnaire served as instruments for the study. The hypothesis--spouses of patients in a critical care unit with a restricted visiting schedule experience greater anxiety than spouses of patients in a critical care unit with an unrestricted visiting schedule--was supported. Spouses following a restricted visiting schedule scored higher on the state anxiety scale than did spouses following an unrestricted schedule. Subjects working full time and within the 40 to 60 age group tended to have higher mean state anxiety scores. Based on the results of the .study, recommendations for future research were made.