Objectives To identify language-related communication barriers that expatriate (non-Arabic) healthcare practitioners in the UAE encounter in their daily practice. Design Qualitative study utilising semi-structured in-depth interviews. The interviews were conducted in English language. Setting Different healthcare facilities across the UAE. These facilities were accessed for data collection over a period of 3 months from January 2023 to March 2023. Participants 14 purposively selected healthcare practitioners. Intervention No specific intervention was implemented; this study primarily aimed at gaining insights through interviews. Primary and secondary outcomes To understand the implications of language barriers on service quality, patient safety, and healthcare providers’ well-being. Results Three main themes emerged from our analysis of participants’ narratives: Feeling left alone, Trying to come closer to their patients and Feeling guilty, scared and dissatisfied. Conclusions Based on the perspectives and experiences of participating healthcare professionals, language barriers have notably influenced the delivery of healthcare services, patient safety and the well-being of both patients and practitioners in the UAE. There is a pressing need, as highlighted by these professionals, for the inclusion of professional interpreters and the provision of training to healthcare providers to enhance effective collaboration with these interpreters.

Families need honest and clear information in order to make decisions about patient care. The study points to many cultural and systemic barriers to good nurse-family communication in intensive care units (ICUs). These barriers include time constraint, language barriers, culture differences, or emotional stress. As communication is key to patient/family outcomes, there is thus a need for more insight and understanding into why and how this occurs. The purpose of this study is to explore the cultural and systematic barriers that hinder effective communication between ICU nurses and family members in Jordanian healthcare settings. An explorative qualitative approach was used to conduct the study, involving semi-structured interviews with 15 ICU nurses and 15 family members. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis framework. The findings revealed two main themes: cultural barriers to communication, with sub-themes including cultural expectations, family-centered care, and mistrust between family members and ICU nurses; and systematic barriers to communication in the ICU, with sub-themes including time pressure and heavy workloads, institutional policies and hierarchies, and inadequate medical explanations. Nurse-family engagement can be strengthened through structured protocols to address cultural hierarchies and institutional constraints as a novel approach to enhancing patient-centeredness, though Jordanian healthcare families seek such approaches.

Aim: To determine the outcomes of Family‐centred Auditory and Tactile Stimulation Implementation on Traumatic Brain Injured Patients in Egypt.Background: Family engagement in the care of their relatives in the Intensive care units is limited due to patients' life‐threatening conditions, in addition to the use of high technology in these settings. Auditory and tactile sensory stimulations are among the diverse sensory stimulations that have received more attention in brain injured patients than other senses as being considered safe, and effective measures.Design: A Quasi‐experimental design was used to test the hypotheses of this study.Methods: A convenience sample of 60 adult patients suffering from Traumatic Brain Injury and admitted to the intensive care units of two University Hospitals in Egypt was included in the study. Patients were assigned into two equal groups: control and study groups (30 patients each). The auditory and tactile stimulations were provided by trained family members, once daily for 2 weeks for the study group. Whereas routine communication was provided by the family of traumatic brain injured patients in the ICU for the control group. Two tools were used for data collection; tool one, the “Glasgow Coma Scale” to assess patient's level of consciousness, and tool two the “Physiological Adverse Events Assessment” to monitor patients for the occurrence of physiological adverse events. Data collection: January to October 2019.Results: The implementation of an organized auditory and tactile stimulation by trained family members is associated with highly statistically significant positive effects . Patients in the study group showed a higher mean of consciousness, lower incidence rate of physiological adverse events, and a lower mean duration of ICU stay.Conclusions: Implementation of an organized auditory and tactile stimulation by trained family members enhanced the consciousness level of comatose Traumatic Brain Injured patients, decreased the occurrence of physiological adverse events, and ICU length of stay. Thus, it is recommended for use in the daily routine nursing care of comatose Traumatic Brain Injured patients.Relevance to Clinical Practice: This study gives a deeper understanding of how family engagement in the care of their critically ill relative enhances their recovery and improve their level of consciousness.

Background: Advanced technologies in intensive care units, including artificial intelligence and digitization, has implications for psycho-emotional aspects of caring in terms of communication, involvement, and holistic provision in a safe, effective, and efficient manner. Critical care nurses must maintain a balance between their technological and humanistic caring behaviours during the provision of individualized holistic patient care. Therefore, this study was conducted to examine level and predictors of caring behaviours among critical care nurses in two Arab countries. Methods: A cross-sectional design was used to achieve the objective of this study, whereby a quantitative online questionnaire survey was administered to 210 adult intensive care unit nurses at two government hospitals in Sharjah (United Arab Emirates), and two university hospitals in Amman (Jordan). Based on G* Power analysis, 200 participants were adequate to run the analysis. Results: On average, 49% of the whole sample had ‘good’ caring behaviours. Among nurses who were working in Emirati intensive care units, 48.5% had good caring behaviours, compared to 47.4% of Jordanian intensive care unit nurses. Additionally, the results showed that predictors of caring behaviours among nurses include female gender, holding a master’s degree, interest in nursing profession, and a 1:1 nurse-to-patient ratio. Conclusions: About half of the ICU nurses in this study had low levels of caring behaviours. The present study highlights the requirement for integrating the concept of holistic and patient-centred care as the essence of the nursing profession in nursing curricula to improve the level of care provided by all nurses working in intensive care units. Continuing education programs and specific interventional programs should be directed toward predictors of caring behaviours among each specific group of nurses. Future research is needed using qualitative methods to understand what the perception of intensive care unit nurses is about caring.

Background: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a globally prevalent behavioural disorder, remains underdiagnosed, particularly among adults. This issue is exacerbated in the Arab region due to stigma and insufficient healthcare facilities and professionals. Despite the United Arab Emirates (UAE) efforts to improve mental healthcare, shortcomings persist. No studies in the UAE currently assesses the appropriateness of the screening system for ADHD and other behavioural issues. Furthermore, prevalence rates of ADHD, particularly within the young adult population, are absent. Aim: To estimate the prevalence of ADHD amongst young adults attending university in UAE and examine its relationship with gender and academic outcomes. Methods: A cross-sectional, correlational design was used. Young adults in their first year at university were recruited from different academic institutions across the UAE. The study utilized the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) for data collection. Results: A sample of 406 young adults, aged between 18 and 20 years of age were recruited. Approximately, 34.7% (n = 141) reported symptoms suggestive of probable ADHD. Significantly lower grade point average marks were observed in participants with ADHD symptoms (M = 3.15) compared to those without (M = 3.35). Females reported symptoms of probable ADHD at higher rates than males, indicating possibly a potential screening deficiency and a potential stigma consequence. Conclusions: The study demonstrates a high prevalence of probable ADHD in young adults, particularly among females attending university in the United Arab Emirates. Implications for early screening, service provision, and greater professional health training on this disorder are required.