Obstacles
Participants rated 26 obstacle items for size and frequency
of occurrence, which yielded perceived obstacle
impact scores (POIS) ranging from 0.592–11.48 (see
Table 2). The highest-ranked obstacle was dealing with
anxious family members. Obstacle items ranked second
and fourth were similar in context: family not accepting
patient’s poor prognosis and families being overly
optimistic despite the patient’s poor prognosis. The obstacle
item ranked third was being called away from the
patient and family because of the need to help with a
new admission or to help other nurses care for their patients.
The lowest-scored items were no social work or