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The purposeful presence and participation of families in the intensive care unit (ICU) may contribute to meeting the emotional and psychological needs of the patient's family, affecting the patient's recovery process. This study aimed to assess the health Status of patients’ families admitted to the ICU under scheduled visitation. This quasi-experimental study was performed on 197 patients’ families admitted to the ICU of Shahid Sadoughi Hospital in Yazd, Iran, during 2022-2023. Participants were selected using convenience sampling. The patients’ families were asked to be present in the ICU for one hour daily, for six consecutive days, and to perform the prescribed procedures. Questionnaires were completed by the patients' families before and six days after the intervention. Demographic information and Critical Care Family Needs Inventory (CCFNI) questionnaires with 5 subscales were used. The collected data were analysed using independent and paired samples t-tests using SPSS software (version 21). Among the 197 participants, 66.4% were female, over half (53.2%) had a diploma or lower educational level, and approximately 40% were spouses of the patients. The intervention led to significant improvements in all subscales of the Critical Care Family Needs Inventory (CCFNI). The mean score for assurance and anxiety reduction decreased from 3.12 ± 0.31 to 2.43 ± 0.37, comfort from 2.93 ±0.38 to 2.55 ± 0.44, information needs from 2.95 ± 0.34 to 2.71 ± 0.38, proximity and accessibility from 2.78 ± 0.32 to 2.57 ± 0.34, and support needs from 2.64 ± 0.30 to 2.44 ± 0.31 (all p ≤ 0.001). The total family needs score also decreased significantly from 2.84 ± 0.16 to 2.53 ± 0.20, demonstrating the effectiveness of scheduled visiting in addressing family needs in the ICU. This study showed that the purposeful presence of a close family member in the ICU significantly reduces critical care needs, most notably support needs, while minimally affecting information needs

Keywords: Patients' Families, Intensive Care Unit, Health Status

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