Deciding to Seek Emergency Care for Acute Myocardial Infarction

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how patients who experience acute myocardial infarction (AMI) decide to seek emergency care. Fifty patients with AMI were interviewed at two hospitals in Lebanon. The perspective of 22 witnesses of the attack was also sought about the cardiac event. The themes that transpired from the data were as follows: making sense of the symptoms, waiting to see what happens, deciding to come to the hospital, and the family influenced the decision to seek care. The witnesses of the cardiac event, mostly family members, supported the decision to seek emergency care. Deciding to seek emergency care for AMI is complex. Nurses must solicit their patients' perception of the cardiac event to provide them with tailored education and counseling about heart attack symptoms and how to respond to them in case they recur. Family members must be included in the education process.