Family functioning in the context of an adult family member with illness: A concept analysis

Aim To describe and explain how the concept of family functioning has been used in the targeted sample of health literature on adult family members with illness. Background Understanding the influence of illness on family functioning is central to the provision of patient‐ and family‐centred care. There is lack of consistency in utilising family functioning which creates confusion about the concept and can interfere with theory development in nursing science. A clear conceptual definition of attributes of family functioning based on concept analysis could act as a guide in the development of instruments to assess family functioning, the design of family‐based interventions and their application in clinical practice. Design Concept analysis. Data sources Academic Search Premier, ProQuest Research Library, Family & Society Studies Worldwide, PsycINFO, SocINDEX, PubMed and CINAHL databases were searched within the last 20 years (1997–Dec. 2016) using the terms “family function*” and “patient.” Studies of paediatric patients and non‐English articles were excluded. Method Rodgers’ evolutionary perspective. Results The findings suggest that family functioning in the context of illness is defined as family members' ability to maintain cohesive relationships with one another, fulfil family roles, cope with family problems, adjust to new family routines and procedures and effectively communicate with each other. Conclusion Further research is needed to inform nurses’ practice when assessing families or providing patient‐ and family‐centred interventions to support family functioning across different sociocultural and political contexts, and further identification and evaluation of antecedents and consequences regarding family functioning from a nursing perspective. Relevance to clinical practice Having a comprehensive understanding of the attributes, antecedents and consequences of ineffective family functioning can facilitate healthcare providers’ ability to identify strengths and potential targets to improve family functioning among their clients.