Introduction
Today, both developed and developing countries are making significant progress in medicine, health, science, and technology. Advances in medical technology, early diagnosis and treatment, and rising living standards are resulting in fewer deaths from diseases; however, as the population ages, the number of people living with chronic diseases is increasing (Hacker Reference Hacker2024; Hill et al. Reference Hill, Starling and Xin2024). In Türkiye, demographic aging has led to a growing care problem in old age, increasing the demand for long-term care and placing additional pressure on both formal healthcare systems and informal caregiving structures (Tufan et al. Reference Tufan, Tiryaki and Doğan2022). Chronic diseases are recognized as a major health problem in developed countries due to increased life expectancy, and they place a serious burden on national economies (Hacker Reference Hacker2024; Hill et al. Reference Hill, Starling and Xin2024). In particular, disability and/or bed dependency associated with chronic disease mean individuals require assistance with daily activities, leading to a greater need for care services (Soontorn et al. Reference Soontorn, Pongtriang and Songwathana2020; Tanrıkulu and Dikmen Reference Tanrıkulu and Dikmen2024).
Individuals with significant health limitations may struggle to participate in daily activities and self-care. As a result, they require ongoing assistance from family members or friends. These individuals are often called bedridden patients, and their family members or caregivers are known as caregivers. However, in institutional care settings, nurses constitute the primary caregivers responsible for delivering continuous, complex, and end-of-life care to bedridden patients. Caregivers of bedridden patients play a vital role in the healthcare system because many patients receive limited professional support from health institutions and nurses (Ceccon et al. Reference Ceccon, Vieira and Brasil2021). Therefore, understanding the lived experiences of nurses caring for bedridden patients is essential for improving the quality and coordination of healthcare services.
Studies on bedridden patients show that nursing care is crucial for patient recovery and rehabilitation (Bhatt et al. Reference Bhatt, Kaur and Dhandapani2024; Murayama et al. Reference Murayama, Filho and Winckler2024; Santos de Carvalho et al. Reference Santos de Carvalho, Souza Santos and Bombarda Muller2024). However, caring for a bedridden patient brings various challenges for nurses. Most of the problems faced by caregivers are similar regardless of the patient’s medical condition. Analyzing the challenges experienced due to care dependency can help identify common issues across cases and clarify how caregivers cope with the situation. It can also illuminate nurses’ expectations of nurses and what nursing care can do to support them. In this context, caregivers’ expectations not only shape the practical aspects of care but also influence the emotional, ethical, and professional experiences of nurses. This connection provides an essential foundation for understanding how nurses make sense of caregiving challenges and their encounters with death in daily practice.
As the population ages, the number of bedridden patients is increasing substantially. A bedridden patient often needs help with almost everything from basic activities such as eating, drinking, dressing, and toileting to more complex tasks, such as medication administration and monitoring vital signs (Yuan et al. Reference Yuan, Shen and Ye2024). This substantial responsibility typically falls on nurses, who are often family members. Evidence shows that caring for bedridden patients leads to significant physical and psychological stress for nurses (Noonan et al. Reference Noonan, Wingham and Taylor2018). Accordingly, understanding nurses’ expectations of nurses and the challenges they face is crucial for improving nursing care. A review of relevant literature indicates that caregivers encounter similar challenges despite differences in patients’ health status; common difficulties include limited understanding of illness, managing patients’ emotional outbursts, and inadequate utilization of health services when needed (Muhrodji et al. Reference Muhrodji, Wicaksono and Satiti2021; Simpson et al. Reference Simpson, Bloom and Fulop2021). Conversely, nurses’ expectations of nurses largely center on receiving appropriate information about the patient and practical guidance on coping with the situation.
Understanding expectations of nurses and the difficulties they face is important for developing effective solutions. Nurses are responsible both for delivering direct bedside care and for managing emotional, ethical, and practical aspects of care; therefore, all support directed to nurses ultimately enhances patient outcomes.
Nurses working with bedridden and terminal patients frequently encounter death and dying, which affects their emotional well-being, clinical decision-making, and communication behaviors. However, limited research has examined nurses’ lived experiences of facing death within palliative and long-term care settings.
Despite the growing body of research on care dependency, very few studies have examined how nurses experience and make sense of death while caring for bedridden patients. Existing studies primarily focus on caregiver burden, clinical care needs, or educational challenges, yet they rarely address the emotional and existential dimension of continual exposure to dying patients. The concept of death awareness nurses’ conscious recognition of the proximity of death and its influence on their clinical judgment, emotional state, and interpersonal interactions remains largely unexplored in palliative and long-term care contexts. Identifying this gap is essential because death awareness shapes nurses’ coping strategies, communication patterns, and quality of care. The present study seeks to address this gap by exploring nurses’ lived experiences of facing death in the daily care of bedridden patients.
Purpose
This study aims to explore the lived experiences of nurses providing care to bedridden patients, with a particular focus on how they face death and how knowledge, time, and communication shape their caregiving practices.
Methods
This study analyzed nurses ‘expectations of nurses and the challenges they face when caring for bedridden patients. A qualitative research design was used to explore nurses’ perceptions and experiences, considering the influence of social and cultural contexts. Qualitative research designs are particularly suitable for exploring individuals’ lived experiences, perceptions, and meanings within their social context (Aziz, Reference Aziz2014). In-depth interviews were conducted to gather detailed narratives from nurses. Ethical approval was obtained, and participants were informed about their rights and the purpose of the study. The sampling strategy involved purposive sampling, including caregivers from selected hospitals. Data collection took place in a private, quiet room within the palliative care units of the participating university hospital and the training and research hospital to ensure comfortable and confidential interviews. All interviews were conducted face to face and lasted approximately 25–45 minutes, depending on the participant’s willingness to elaborate on their experiences. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and translated for analysis, with key themes identified. Data collection took place in a quiet environment to ensure comfortable and confidential interviews. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and translated for analysis, with key themes identified. The qualitative framework effectively captured nurses’ narratives, highlighting their vital yet challenging role. Despite possible limitations and biases, the findings contribute to understanding nurses’ expectations and challenges (Hailu et al. Reference Hailu, Abdelkader and Meles2024).
Qualitative research approach
This study on nurses caring for bedridden patients uses a qualitative research approach. Qualitative methods are particularly suitable for exploring the personal experiences, emotions, expectations, and perspectives of caregivers, as they allow participants to describe their experiences in their own words (Onseng et al. Reference Onseng, Jiraporncharoen and Moonkayaow2024). Through rich and detailed narratives, qualitative research provides a deeper understanding of the subjective meanings caregivers attach to their caregiving roles and their interactions with nurses.
Data for this study were collected using in-depth, face-to-face individual interviews, which enabled open, flexible, and meaningful dialogue between the researchers and participants. These individual interviews provided a safe environment where caregivers could comfortably share sensitive and emotionally charged experiences related to providing care for bedridden patients. Building trust and rapport was essential to encourage participants to express their thoughts freely.
Qualitative methods were particularly appropriate for this study because they reveal both the emotional and practical dimensions of caregiving. This approach enabled the researchers to gain a nuanced understanding of caregivers’ expectations of nurses, the challenges they encounter, and the broader context of dependency and illness that shapes their experiences.
Universe and sample
The caregiving needs of bedridden patients represent a growing public health concern due to increasing life expectancy and higher rates of chronic illness. As dependency levels rise, families experience greater physical, emotional, and social burdens, which increases the need for structured nursing support. Understanding how caregivers manage these responsibilities and what they expect from nurses provides essential insight into improving the quality and continuity of care.
Within this broad context, the present study focuses specifically on the primary caregivers of bedridden patients receiving care in palliative units. The study population consisted of caregivers of patients hospitalized in the palliative care units of a university hospital and a training and research hospital in Istanbul between April and August 2024. Purposive sampling was used to identify participants who could provide rich, relevant information regarding their caregiving experiences.
To capture a wide range of perspectives, maximum variation sampling was applied, enabling the inclusion of nurses with diverse demographic and caregiving backgrounds. A total of 74 caregivers were initially recruited; data collection continued until thematic saturation was reached, resulting in 70 nurses being included in the final analysis.
Inclusion criteria
Nurses who undertook the role of primary caregiver for at least 1 month and who were over 18 years of age of the bedridden patient being cared for were included in the study. Primary caregivers with psychological or physical disorders, visual and hearing impairment were excluded from the study. Psychological distress was evaluated using a self-report screening item included in the demographic data form. Participants were asked the following question: “Have you experienced any psychological distress (such as anxiety, stress, sadness, or emotional strain) in the past month?” Response options were Yes or No. Participants who indicated severe psychological distress or ongoing psychiatric treatment were excluded. Mild or moderate self-reported distress was not an exclusion criterion.
Data collection tools
Before starting the study, the open-ended questions were formed in a semi-structured form in order to create a general profile of the participants and to determine their characteristics that may be useful for future research. The interview guide is based on two main questions reported by the researcher: “Please tell us about your experiences while caring for your patient,” “What are your expectations from the nurses in the institution where you receive health care during this process?”
The semi-structured interview guide used in this study was specifically developed for this research. It was designed to explore the expectations and challenges caregivers of bedridden patients face in nursing care. The interview questions were created based on a literature review and expert opinions in the field. The Data Collection Form included demographic items (age, gender, marital status, education level, years of caregiving/nursing experience, current unit) and a self-reported psychological distress question used for eligibility screening.
Data analysis
Data from all interviews were analyzed to provide an in-depth understanding of nurses’ lived experiences of caring for bedridden patients. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) checklist guided the methodological reporting process (Tong et al. Reference Tong, Sainsbury and Craig2007). Data saturation determined the final sample size, and interviews continued until no new themes emerged.
All audio-recorded interviews were transcribed verbatim and reviewed multiple times to gain familiarity with the data. Two researchers independently conducted initial coding. Early coding drew on conventional content analysis techniques to capture meaningful units within the narratives. Codes were then organized and compared to ensure consistency, and discrepancies were resolved through consensus. The coded data were exported to Excel to summarize code frequencies, track analytical decisions, and document non-confirming cases.
Following initial coding, the researchers proceeded with a phenomenological approach based on inductive thematic analysis, which was the primary analytical framework. This approach allowed themes to emerge directly from participants’ narratives without predefined coding structures. The thematic analysis process followed the five established steps:
1. Familiarization with the dataset,
2. Systematic coding,
3. Generating initial themes,
4. Reviewing and refining themes, and
5. Defining and naming final themes (Sundler et al. Reference Sundler, Lindberg and Nilsson2019).
A thematic map was constructed to illustrate relationships among codes and themes. To enhance the credibility and trustworthiness of the analysis, several rigor strategies were implemented, including peer debriefing with expert qualitative researchers and member-check interviews with selected participants to confirm the accuracy of interpretations.
As a result of this analytic process, three themes were identified: Deficits in Knowledge and Training, Communication and Coordination, and Time Management. Selected quotations were embedded to represent nurses’ experiences and provide thick description.
Results
The demographic characteristics of the nurses (n = 70) are presented in Table 1.
Table 1. Demographic characteristics of nurses (n = 70)
Table 2 illustrates the progression from initial codes to subthemes and final themes, offering a clear overview of the analytical structure used in the thematic analysis. Providing this coding schema enhances methodological transparency and strengthens the credibility of the findings.
1. Main Theme: Knowledge and Education
Table 2. Schematic distribution of qualitative themes and codes
In this study, nurses of bedridden patients emphasized the critical importance of addressing knowledge and educational gaps. These deficiencies in training appear to be at the center of many challenges nurses face and profoundly affect their ability to manage patient care effectively. During interviews, many nurses expressed feelings of inadequacy in their caregiving roles, as well as anxiety about how little they knew regarding their patients’ medical conditions and how this lack of understanding impacted their responsibilities.
In this study, carers listed many specific tasks expected of them when caring for a bedridden patient, but many felt unprepared for them. For example, one nurse stated, “It is difficult to feed him through the tube in his abdomen, sometimes it feels like it does not go away,” “We are constantly giving air, when his mask comes off, his oxygen drops,” a nurse of a patient with a home ventilator stated, “Being connected to a respirator is our biggest problem,” “I am afraid of doing something wrong to the patient.” In particular, they expressed their lack of knowledge about post-discharge medication management with the expressions “He takes a lot of medication, will we continue all of these medications at home?,” “What are the medications for?.” Many nurses also expressed their concerns about the post-discharge process, expressing their need for information as “”I am worried about what kind of process I will follow after discharge, “”I am waiting for them to explain what happened and what we need to do. These statements exemplify how a lack of understanding of the medical condition itself can leave carers feeling unprepared to address care. These gaps in knowledge of a patient’s condition and care practices can lead to increased stress for the nurse and poor outcomes for the patient. These statements suggest that targeted and individualized education of nurses about medical conditions and care practices is crucial. In addition to their lack of knowledge, nurses expressed their expectations in this regard as follows: “Nurse friends are more helpful. They teach care education visually and in detail, ‘Nurses direct care’, ‘I want them to explain the condition of my patient and what kind of process awaits us’.” In summary, the need for educational programs and resources for non-professional caregivers is highlighted as crucial to alleviate much of the stress and incapacity felt by nurses. Currently, existing educational programs are only available within the care services offered in hospitals. Nurses have a potential role to play in offering continuing education to caregivers. However, sufficient time and the right method of education are important. One caregiver said: “Sometimes I don’t understand, I don’t know what to do. I wait for them to help and tell me what to do at home. In this context, caregivers’ expressions of fear and uncertainty also reflected an underlying awareness of mortality. The anxiety of ‘doing something wrong’ was not only about harming the patient but also about the fear of losing them. This indicates that educational gaps are closely linked with emotional distress and death awareness. For caregivers, learning about medical procedures becomes a way to gain control in the face of potential loss, while nurses” educational guidance helps transform this fear into preparedness.
2. Main Theme: Time Management
A common struggle for nurses was managing time effectively. Despite their best intentions, many carers reported feeling overwhelmed by the demands of providing care while trying to fulfill their own responsibilities, such as work and personal care. Those who were unable to balance caring responsibilities with other life tasks felt that this had a serious impact on their mental health. Nurses used expressions such as “I have been here for days,” “I take care of my patient alone, I leave my patient to the nurses and go to do my job, but sometimes I wait because they are busy too,” “I do not have the strength and courage to care.”
As a result, many nurses indicated that a large part of their time management struggles depended on the availability of resources. Overall, this theme highlights the significant impact of time management issues on the overall well-being of nurses and suggests the need for more systematic support to alleviate these concerns.
Beyond the physical exhaustion, nurses’ struggle with time also represents a psychological confrontation with death. Time often feels suspended between hope and despair, as many describe days merging into nights around the patient’s bed. The passing of time becomes intertwined with the awareness of the patient’s decline, creating what can be described as a “rhythm of dying.” For nurses, each moment spent providing care carries both the value of presence and the silent anticipation of loss. Recognizing this temporal dimension of dying could guide nurses in offering emotional as well as practical support.
3. Main Theme: Communication and Coordination
Communication and coordination between nurses and nurses are often fraught with difficulties and represent significant challenges for nurses. Through in-depth interviews, nurses explained that while receiving healthcare, they were required to communicate not only with nurses but also with multiple professionals, such as physicians, physiotherapists, and dietitians, which often left them feeling helpless and overwhelmed on behalf of their bedridden loved ones. Nurses’ statements revealed several barriers to effective communication. Many nurses express the lack of time of nurses and doctors as follows: “Doctors only come for visits, they have a lot of work to do, but we cannot reach them when we want to ask something,” “Nurses are very busy, but they still try to come immediately when we need,” “I can only see the doctor during visits”, “it is time for us.” “I want them to separate.” In fact, while these expressions also express fragmented care, they also show that communication is almost always one-way. This is because health professionals communicate with nurses only when they need something. Nurses expressed that another important expectation in terms of communication is empathy with the expressions “I expect them to empathize when approaching the patient and us,” “I expect them to communicate with us with a smile,” “I expect them to approach our patient with tolerance and empathy.”
Within these narratives, the absence of empathetic communication can also be understood as the absence of shared acknowledgment of death. Nurses often stand alone in their emotional experience, silently confronting mortality without professional validation. When nurses approach communication with genuine empathy, they not only improve coordination but also help nurses voice their grief and fear. In this sense, communication becomes more than an exchange of information; it becomes a human connection that recognizes both life and its approaching end.
Discussion
Three themes were identified in the interviews with the nurses of bedridden patients: Information and Training, Time management, Communication, and Co-ordination.
Caring for bedridden patients presents various expectations and challenges in accessing nurses. These expectations and challenges vary according to the patient’s condition, the age and health status of the nurse, and the nature of the relationship between them. Seventy primary nurses of bedridden patients from 2 hospitals, a university hospital, and a training and research hospital were interviewed in detail to explore their expectations of nurses. Three significant challenges were identified and analyzed: lack of knowledge transfer and training, communication barriers, and time constraints. Among these, information needs related to caregiving were considered the most fundamental issue.
Information and training
This study revealed that nurses caring for bedridden patients experience significant knowledge and training gaps, which shape their professional responsibilities, emotional burden, and decision-making processes. Nurses frequently expressed feelings of uncertainty when caring for patients with complex or terminal conditions. Previous research also supports our finding that insufficient knowledge leads nurses to feel unprepared, increasing the risk of care-related errors and contributing to elevated stress levels (Bahrami et al. Reference Bahrami, Etemadifar and Shahriari2014). Studies indicate that a lack of information becomes increasingly complex as nurses. Similarly, communication process for bedridden patients continues, particularly when new and unexpected challenges arise (Dammann et al. Reference Dammann, Staudacher and Simon2022).
In the literature, it has been stated that caregivers of bedridden patients seek simple, basic medical information to understand the patient’s condition and illness better and to build trust in the healthcare professionals who provide treatment (Kıssal et al. Reference Kıssal, Kurt and Koç2019). At the same time, caregivers of bedridden patients seek information about what they can do to promote their patients’ recovery and how they can provide appropriate care (Farmahini-Farahani et al. Reference Farmahini-Farahani, Khankeh and Hosseini2019; Jukic et al. Reference Jukic, Gagliardi and Fagnani2017). Providing caregivers with sufficient information about the patient’s medical condition is essential to enable informed care decisions (Schaffler et al. Reference Schaffler, Tremblay and Laizner2019). In a study conducted in Turkey, it was found that caregivers’ knowledge levels increased and their perceived burden of care decreased following an educational intervention (Öğür et al. Reference Öğür, Gözüm and Taş2019). The concept of time is essential for both caregivers and nurses in managing the care process of bedridden patients.
Time management
Time management emerged as a pervasive challenge. Nurses reported experiencing overwhelming workloads, difficulty balancing multiple clinical tasks, and insufficient time for meaningful interaction with patients and families.
Research indicates that caregivers who provide care for more than 14 hours per day experience approximately twice the level of care burden compared to those who spend less time on caregiving (Ahmad Zubaidi et al. Reference Ahmad Zubaidi, Ariffin and Oun2020). One of the most prominent expectations of primary caregivers is that nurses allocate sufficient time for patient and caregiver support (Andersen et al. Reference Andersen, Løfgren and Skipper2024). Furthermore, studies have shown that inadequate communication and coordination during transition planning create significant challenges for the continuity and quality of care (Carbone et al. Reference Carbone, Kokorelias and Berta2022). Toscan et al. (Reference Toscan, Manderson and Santi2013) similarly reported that fragmented care, involving multiple professionals without coordinated communication, places the caregiver in the position of the sole connector a pattern also observed in our interviews. Beyond these structural and practical issues, the findings reveal that caregivers live under a constant but often implicit awareness of death. While death may not have been mentioned explicitly, caregivers’ experiences of waiting, of tasks that “must be done before something irreversible happens,” align with what has been identified in end-of-life caregiving literature as a “silent proximity to death” (Bijnsdorp et al. Reference Bijnsdorp, Onwuteaka-Philipsen, Boot, van der Beek and Pasman2022). This awareness amplifies the burden of information deficit: it is not only about not knowing what to do, but fearing that lack of knowledge may hasten the patient’s decline or death.
Time management difficulties become more than scheduling conflicts they reflect what caregivers describe as living in the “rhythm of dying.” The literature shows that caregivers of patients with life-threatening illnesses experience increasing burden as death approaches and describe their experience as temporal distortion, where days stretch and responsibilities multiply (Bijnsdorp et al. Reference Bijnsdorp, Onwuteaka-Philipsen, Boot, van der Beek and Pasman2022). In this way, the expectation that nurses “make time” is loaded with existential meaning: time given is time bought from the impending ending.
Beyond the emotional dimension of time, existing literature highlights that many caregiver support services primarily focus on reducing caregiver burden rather than improving the quality of patient care itself. This imbalance can inadvertently limit the support caregivers receive for managing complex care tasks. As noted by Jowsey et al. (Reference Jowsey, McRae and Gillespie2013), the extensive health-related activities undertaken by caregivers often consume substantial amounts of time, restricting their ability to perform other essential tasks and potentially affecting the overall quality of care. These findings parallel the present study’s results, in which caregivers reported significant time pressure and unmet needs for practical nursing guidance.
Communication and coordination
Similarly, communication and coordination issues appear frequently among nurses. When nurses say that nurses or doctors have no time, or that they cannot reach them when they need help, they are communicating not only frustration with service delivery but also with the fact that no one is helping them to prepare for the inevitable. Studies of caregivers in home death contexts highlight that the feeling of security is linked to clear, empathetic communication and to acknowledgment of the dying process (Barlund et al. Reference Barlund, André, Sand and Brenne2021). Incomplete coordination between professionals leaves caregivers as lone witnesses of decline, which magnifies their emotional isolation.
These insights imply that nursing and caregiver support programs should extend beyond delivering information, scheduling time, and improving coordination. They should incorporate components of death awareness: helping caregivers recognize the trajectory of decline, supporting them in processing the emotional weight of facing mortality, and facilitating preparation rather than only reaction. The literature supports the idea that caregiver death-preparedness is associated with better outcomes for both the caregiver and the patient (Wen et al. Reference Wen, Xie, Ma, Chen, Liang, Zeng, Ding and Tang2025). Additionally, integrating death-awareness modules and structured reflective supervision sessions in palliative care units may support nurses’ emotional resilience and improve end-of-life communication. These practice-oriented strategies complement, but do not overlap with, the future research directions presented below.
Strengths and limitations
This study has several strengths. First, it includes a relatively large sample of nurses working directly with bedridden patients in palliative care, offering rich and diverse perspectives. Second, data collection was conducted through in-depth, face-to-face interviews, allowing participants to share detailed experiences. Third, the study followed the COREQ guidelines and used a rigorous thematic analysis process, enhancing methodological transparency and credibility. These strengths contribute to the originality and depth of the findings and distinguish this study from previous research.
A key strength of this study is that it provides a rich and in-depth understanding of nurses’ lived experiences of facing death while caring for bedridden patients. The use of a qualitative phenomenological design allowed nurses to express their emotional, ethical, and professional perspectives in their own words, offering insights that are rarely captured in quantitative research. The inclusion of participants from both a university hospital and a training and research hospital enhanced data diversity and contextual validity. The rigorous thematic analysis process, guided by COREQ criteria and peer review, strengthened the trustworthiness and credibility of the findings.
However, this study also has several limitations. The data were collected from 2 hospitals in Istanbul, which may limit the generalizability of the results to other cultural or institutional contexts. The self-reported nature of the interviews may have been influenced by social desirability bias, particularly when discussing sensitive topics such as death and emotional distress. In addition, although member checks and peer debriefing were conducted, the interpretation of death awareness themes may still reflect subjective influences of the researchers. Future research could include longitudinal or multi-site designs to explore how nurses’ experiences of death awareness evolve across different care settings and cultural backgrounds.
Future research
Future studies should further explore the multidimensional nature of nurses’ death awareness and its impact on professional practice, moral distress, and emotional resilience. Longitudinal qualitative research could examine how repeated exposure to dying patients shapes nurses’ coping mechanisms and ethical decision-making over time. Comparative studies across different healthcare settings such as intensive care, oncology, and home care may reveal how institutional culture influences nurses’ ability to face death and sustain compassionate care.
Quantitative or mixed-methods designs could also be used to develop and validate measurement tools that assess nurses’ death awareness and related competencies. Additionally, intervention studies focusing on death education, reflective supervision, and interprofessional communication training may provide evidence-based strategies to strengthen nurses’ preparedness for end-of-life care.
Conclusions
Three themes were identified in interviews with caregivers of bedridden patients: Knowledge gaps; Time management difficulties; Communication problems. These three themes emphasise the importance of systematically assessing the abilities of caregivers of bedridden patients at the beginning of healthcare provision and creating moments of contact between caregivers and nurses. It also emphasizes the importance of promoting open communication and strong relationships between caregivers and health professionals. Regular contact opportunities, information transfer to caregivers together with all health professionals caring for their patients are recommended changes. Despite these recommendations, it is acknowledged that the implementation process is complex and time-consuming and requires the cooperation of various stakeholders, especially healthcare organizations. Nurses are the key stakeholders in the delivery of health services. As a result, it is aimed to inform caregivers about the critical support systems necessary for them to feel empowered rather than overwhelmed, and nurses have the most critical role in ensuring interdisciplinary coordination.
Data availability statement
No/Not applicable (this manuscript does not report data generation or analysis).
Author contributions
E.A. and F.A. designed the study. F.A. collected all the data. E.A. and F.A. performed the data analysis and interpretation. E.A. and F.A. wrote and prepared the original drafts. All authors contributed to drafting or critically revising the article for intellectual content, and all authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Funding
This work received no special funding.
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no disclaimers or conflicts of interest.
Ethical approval
Verbal and written consent forms were obtained from the participants for audio recording during the interview. The study was conducted with ethical approval from the Maltepe University Non-Interventional Ethics Committee under the approval number 2024/07-02. The study was carried out in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. Clinical trial number: not applicable.
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