Having faith: experiencing coronary artery bypass grafting

Even though coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is a commonly performed procedure, it is perceived by the client as a life-threatening event. When one is faced with a crisis, spiritual issues become extremely important. The purposes of this qualitative study were to discover what the spiritual needs are for CABG clients and how these needs are met during hospitalization. Grounded theory methodology was used to accomplish these goals. Data were collected through semistructured interviews with 17 adults, ages 34 to 83, who were 4 to 7 days post-CABG. Initially, the interview questions centered around how they felt when told of the need for surgery and how spiritual issues entered into that decision. From these questions a pattern emerged that led to the development of specific research questions. The major findings were that spiritual needs centered around having faith in their decision making, in the hospital staff (especially the nurses), and an overwhelming faith in God. CABG is a time of great stress, a time of feeling "pulled apart" and fragmented. Clients need to feel a sense of wholeness, not only physically and psychologically, but also spiritually. Because nurses are with clients on a consistent basis, they are able to assess and identify spiritual needs and provide needed spiritual resources. If nurses are educated to meet these needs it may help clients become more aware that nurses care about them as human beings who have a variety of needs with which the nurse is willing to assist.