FAMLI-RESCUE: a family assessment tool for use by neuroscience nurses in the acute care setting.

Family function information is essential to providing holistic nursing care, assessing specific areas of family dysfunction and assisting the client in adaptation to stress using family or external resources. This article presents an assessment tool developed by the author for collection and evaluation of family data in a simple format that can be used by neuroscience nurses caring for the ill or injured family member in the acute care setting. Theoretical rationale is presented along with a description of the instrument and its application. Based on assessment data, the health care plan is developed by nurses using expertise from health team members where appropriate.