A necessary evil? Interventions to prevent nasogastric tube-tugging after stroke

This study explores the perspectives of patients, relatives and carers on the use of interventions to prevent nasogastric tube-tugging following a stroke. The study was qualitative and involved focus groups with practitioners (n=3) and interviews with stroke patients (n=4) and relatives (n=4). Data were analysed using a grounded theory approach to identify key categories. The authors found that practitioners, patients and relatives viewed the use of interventions (e.g. hand mittens) to maintain nasogastric tube feeding in terms of benefits, harms and justice. The core category, linking all data, was ‘a necessary evil’, i.e. while interventions were undesirable their use as a final resort might be justified to maintain patients′ nutritional status post-stroke