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Preserving the self: women having cardiac surgery
Objective:
To explore the process that women undergo when having cardiac surgery.
Design:
A grounded theory approach was used to gain an understanding of the core process.
Setting:
A large community hospital with an active cardiovascular surgery practice and research center.
Participants:
Ten women, between 21 and 79 years of age, who had undergone cardiac surgery in the last 3 months.
Results:
Behaviors in which the women were engaged when having cardiac surgery were directed toward "preserving the self" while getting through the surgical experience. This process had five phases: waiting, getting there, surviving, being there, and moving on. Strategies used by these women in preserving the self throughout the phases were: relating, making sense of, managing, and normalizing what was happening to them.
Conclusion:
By having a clearer understanding of the process women undergo when having cardiac surgery, health care providers will be able to participate more effectively with women through their experience.