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Volume 38, Issue 4, Pages 284-291 (July 2009)


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Addressing spouses' unique needs after cardiac surgery when recovery is complicated by heart failure

Susanna Ågren, RN, MNaCorresponding Author Informationemail address, Gunilla Hollman Frisman, RN, PhDb, Sören Berg, MD, PhDc, Rolf Svedjeholm, MD, PhDd, Anna Strömberg, RN, PhDe

published online 27 January 2009.

Background

Cardiac surgery places extensive stress on spouses who often are more worried than the patients themselves. Spouses can experience difficult and demanding situations when the partner becomes critically ill.

Objectives

To identify, describe, and conceptualize the individual needs of spouses of patients with complications of heart failure after cardiac surgery.

Methods

Grounded theory using a mix of systematic coding, data analysis, and theoretical sampling was performed. Spouses, 10 women and 3 men between 39 and 85 years, were interviewed.

Results

During analysis, the core category of confirmation was identified as describing the individual needs of the spouses. The core category theoretically binds together three underlying subcategories: security, rest for mind and body, and inner strength. Confirmation facilitated acceptance and improvement of mental and physical health among spouses.

Conclusions

By identifying spouses' needs for security, rest for mind and body, and inner strength, health care professionals can confirm these needs throughout the caring process, from the critical care period and throughout rehabilitation at home. Interventions to confirm spouses' needs are important because they are vital to the patients' recovery.

a Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Linköping University Hospital and Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Division of Nursing Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping; and Vårdal Institute, Lund, Sweden

b Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Division of Nursing Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

c Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Linköping University Hospital, Linköping, Sweden

d Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Linköping University Hospital and Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Division of Circulation, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

e Department of Cardiology, Linköping University Hospital and Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Division of Nursing Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author: Susanna Ågren, RN, MN, Department of Medical and Health Sciences, Division of Nursing Sciences, Linköping University, S-58185 Linköping, Sweden

 Financial support was obtained from Linköping University, the Vårdal Instititute, the Vårdal Foundation, and the Swedish Research Council.

PII: S0147-9563(08)00180-5

doi:10.1016/j.hrtlng.2008.10.002


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