Nurses' perceptions of patient participation in the myocardial infarction pathway

To explore nurses' perceptions of patient participation in different phases of the myocardial infarction pathway.

Qualitative design with a hermeneutical approach.

Five focus groups were conducted at two hospitals, one with and one without percutaneous coronary intervention facilities, between February-November 2018. Participants were recruited through purposive sampling. Twenty-two nurses experienced in cardiac care participated. The analysis had a hermeneutical approach.

The findings revealed nurses' perceptions of patient participation in different phases of the myocardial infarction pathway. Four themes were identified: (a) variation between paternalism and autonomy in the acute phase; (b) individualization of dialogue and patient participation during treatment; (c) lack of coherence in the pathway hinders patient participation at discharge; and (d) cardiac rehabilitation promotes patients' autonomous decisions in lifestyle changes.