The purpose of this study was to provide basic informations for developing family-focused nursing interventions for families with chronic illness. the results of this study were as follows. In family caregiver systems, spouses of chronically ill patients showed higher anxiety scores9t=4.71, P=.000) and higher scores of the perceived importance of family functioning(t=3.67, P=.000) than those of children of chronically ill patients. But spouses showed lower scores of the satisfaction of family functioning (t=2.92, P=.005) than those of children of chronically ill patients. For spouses of chronically ill patients, the correlation between the satisfaction of family functioning and anxiety turned out to be significant9r=-.518, P=.001). However for children the correlation between them was not statistically significant. Findings of this study suggest that families with chronic illness need family-focused nursing interventions to relieve their anxiety and to improve family functioning. In conclusion, the investigation about family functioning and anxiety provides useful information for family-focused nursing care, especially for spouses of chronically ill patients. This information will contribute to developing the support systems for family caregivers and the education programs that helps chronically ill patients.
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