Abstract
The present study aimed to clarify the situation of patients in multiple-bed wards and their use of privacy curtains. An anonymous, self-completed questionnaire was administered to 278 patients staying in 4-person rooms in a general hospital ward. The questionnaire surveyed patients' individual situations, reasons for drawing the curtain around the bed, whether patients were able to open and close the curtain as they wished, and what patients required from nurses. Valid responses were obtained from 235 patients. The results revealed that 90% and 25% of patients closed the curtain at night and during the day, respectively. Whether patients closed the curtain at night depended on the position of the patient's bed in the ward. Among patients who kept the curtain closed all day, the extent to which the curtain was closed varied with the time of day.
Patients' reasons for closing the curtain were classified into six categories for use at night and five categories for use during the day. The most frequent reason was to maintain privacy: the curtain creates personal space within which patients can refuse intervention from outside and protect their individual dignity. The present results suggest that nursing care should take into consideration patients' personal space.
