Negotiating self-care in rehabilitation nursing

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation Nursing
• Patient Self-Care Management
• Grounded Theory Research

Background:

• Understanding nurse and patient perspectives on self-care is crucial in rehabilitation.
• Previous research has not fully explored the dynamics of self-care control negotiation between nurses and patients.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine nurse and patient perceptions of self-care.
• To investigate the performance of self-care in rehabilitation settings.
• To explore the negotiation of self-care control between nurses and patients.

Main Methods:

• Grounded theory methodology was employed.
• In-depth interviews were conducted with 12 nurses and 12 rehabilitation patients.
• Data analysis focused on identifying patterns in self-care expectations and negotiations.

Main Results:

• Both nurses and patients held expectations about who should control specific aspects of patient self-care.
• Noncongruent expectations often led to negotiation processes.
• Successful negotiation resulted in a balanced approach to self-care, optimizing nurse-patient control.

Conclusions:

• Negotiation is a key process in achieving a functional balance of self-care in rehabilitation.
• Shared control and congruent expectations enhance the performance of self-care.
• This study highlights the importance of addressing differing self-care expectations for effective rehabilitation outcomes.