JOURNAL OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH IN HEALTH SCIENCES
Year:2013 | Volume:2 | Issue:1|Papers Count:8

Introduction: Donations are one of the resources for financing healthcare. As charities do not always work according to the objectives of health systems, numerous problems develop. This study aimed to identify charities engaged in the health sector of Kerman Province (Iran) and to describe their management, their interactions with other parts of the health system, and their problems and challenges.Method: In the present qualitative study, six charities were identified. We interviewed 15 purposefully selected individuals working in these institutions. The interviews were conducted based on structured interview guide in the form of two in-depth interviews. Data was analyzed through framework analysis.Results: Six themes were recognized regarding charity institutions management. They included institution practice scope, resourcing, type of donations, resource utilization pattern, challenges and interactions with universities and other related institutes.Conclusion: Our findings indicated that primary health issues are not amongst the priorities of the studied charities. On the other hand, as donations are not a sustainable resource, other specific resources are necessary. Donations should be directed toward the objectives of institutions. Legal and administrative obstacles have to be completely eliminated. Medical universities and other organizations should continue their mutual relationship with charities to facilitate the implementation of charities’ plans.

Introduction: Health is a holistic concept that incorporates physical, social, cultural, emotional, spiritual, mental, mystical, intrinsic, communicative, and cognitive dimensions. However, spirituality is the least understood and most challenged dimension of health. The purpose of this study was to explore the concept of spirituality.Method: In a conventional content analysis, 10 participants of the Quran and Medicine Congress were recruited. Data was collected with semi-structured interviews and narrative approach.Results: We recognized one theme, i.e. multidimensional concept of spirituality and its aspects, and two main subthemes, namely different perceptions of people about the concept of spirituality and various aspects of spirituality.Conclusion: Although this study provided a definition of spirituality and its dimensions, these concepts are ambiguous and have unclear domains. Therefore, further investigations are necessary to differentiate between aspects of spirituality.

Introduction: Retirement is a crucial period of life. However, the necessity of paying attention to the retired person's health and needs is usually neglected. This study explored the experiences of retired nurses of health status during retirement.Method: This qualitative study used maximum variation sampling to select 23 retired nurses in Semnan (Iran) during 2010-11. Semi-structured interviews with open questions were used to collect data. The interviews were recorded and transcribed word by word. They were finally analyzed with content analysis.Results: Helplessness was extracted as the main theme. It included subthemes of physical weakness, emotional emptiness, inadequate social status, and desperation and trust in God.Conclusion: The findings of this study explained the physical, mental, social, financial, and spiritual aspects of health based on the experience of retired nurses. These factors emphasized the necessity of attention to the health needs of the retired population by health authorities and planners. Obviously, implementing appropriate interventions for supporting this group will promote the health of all retired individuals in the community.

Introduction: Permanent cardiac pacemaker implantation, and introducing a foreign body into the heart, a part of the human anatomy that symbolically represents emotions, may be considered a major life event. Therefore, it is recommended that the healthcare team gain understanding of the experience of pacemaker patients and present information based on patients’ experiences in order to actively involve the patients in the administration and management of their illness process. The aim of this qualitative study is to explore the patients' experiences of living with a permanent cardiac pacemaker.Method: In this study, descriptive phenomenological method and the Colaizzi's proposed stages were used. Purposeful sampling of patients with single and dual chamber cardiac pacemakers was performed. Overall, 13 interview sessions were held with 10 participants. The minimum duration of an interview was 35 minutes and the maximum 54 minutes. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews.Results: The emerging themes according to the qualitative data are embedded in the Iranian socio-cultural context. They consist of five themes: living with pacemaker, pacemaker identity, balance in control, consequences and relief.Conclusion: The findings of this study, as a small image of the large and complex world, can be used in order to design and implement effective care for pacemaker patients. Having a clearer understanding of these patients’ experiences will help healthcare workers to design supportive and caring programs that will meet these patients’ needs more holistically.

Introduction: The ways in which doctors and patients interact, have an incredible impact on the quality of treatment and improvement of the disease. Although most researches agree on the impact of these relationships on the quality of healthcare, not many researches and practical work have been done on this very important field. Moreover, recently the multiple patient visit phenomenon (seeing several patients simultaneously) at the doctor's offices, especially obstetricians, is becoming common, which is clearly far from the ideal doctors-patient relationship patterns.Method: In the current research the ethnographic qualitative approach has been used. For collecting data qualitative method of participatory observation and for data analysis the procedure of theoretical coding have been used. The target community is the women going to obstetricians' offices in Ahvaz, from which 28 cases of interactions between these patients and doctors have been chosen and observed through judgment sampling.Results: In the coding step the patients' verbal behavior in terms of 3 minor categories of asking questions, expressing concerns, comments and suggestions are subcategories for the major category of "patient participatory behavior". Furthermore, the doctor's verbal behavior is the main subcategory, and encouraging the patients to talk more, and respecting the patients' ideas and beliefs are the secondary subcategories of "doctor participatory behavior". Patients' and doctors' non-verbal behavior in the process of interactions has been recorded and put in the final analysis through filling out the observation protocol, and field notes.Conclusion: According to the analysis of the obtained data, only a few doctor-patient interactions at the studied doctors' offices were real evidence of participatory behavior. This behavior was observed far less in offices with multiple patient visits than in other offices. Understanding biological, social, and cultural aspects of the disease can affect the doctor's communication with the patient. It can even help the doctor in understanding the patients’ issues and mental or physical problems, reaching an accurate diagnosis of the disease, and choosing appropriate and efficient treatment.

Introduction: Early widowhood causes an increase in stress and health risks in mothers. The objective of this study was to investigate life experiences of these women regarding being the head of the household and its consequences.Method: In this descriptive, exploratory study in-depth interviews were held with 24 widowed parents until achieving data saturation. The data were analyzed using the constant comparative method.Results: The results of data analysis were classified into four main categories: acceptance of the paradoxical identity of a guardian without a guardian, difficulties facing the female head of the household, contexts of difficulties, and female weariness. The subcategories of each category were also determined.Conclusion: The results indicate that lack of attention to widowed female head of the family, who continued to care for their children voluntarily and often in stressful situations, will have negative consequences. Therefore,, beside economical support, they also need the comprehensive support of their family during the process of role transition. Moreover, they need the support of social welfare and social healthcare delivery systems, especially community health nurses, in order to adapt positively to life after the death of their spouse.

Introduction: Nurse–patient relationship is a fundamental element of nursing care. However, many factors inhibit relationship development. The purpose in this study was to explore barriers to nurse-patient relationship in the operating room.Method: A descriptive, qualitative study was conducted by means of semi-structured interviews with 16 participants (8 nurses, 7 patients, and 1 relative), and 14 field notes and observations until data saturation. The data were analyzed through conventional qualitative content analysis.Results: The emergent theme was the "complex and dynamic nature of relationship development". This theme consisted of four main categories: "complexity of human behavior", "the nature of operating room nurse's job", "different conditions for creating a relationship", and "neglecting and marginalizing a relationship".Conclusion: This study provided a better understanding of nurse-patient relationship inhibitors in the operation room, an issue that is often neglected in quantitative studies. Based on the results of this study, the development of policies and strategies to increase nurse-patient relationships in the operation rooms are necessary.

Introduction: Although it is an accepted fact that using coping strategies have an important role in the coping process and quality of life following spinal cord injury (SCI), there is still little information about this issue in the world and especially in Iran. The purpose of this study was to explore important coping strategies used by Iranian patients with spinal cord injuries.Method: 18 patients with SCI from The Brain and Spinal injury Repair Research Center of Tehran University of Medical Sciences, and the Protection Center of the disabled with spinal cord injury were interviewed deeply. Data were collected through recorded interviews, and concurrently analyzed using the conventional content analysis method.Results: Data analysis showed seeking help from religious beliefs (understanding the disease as a divine fate and test, appeal to Imams, and increasing worship), to be an important coping strategy.Conclusion: Understanding strategies that influence the patients’ coping with the SCI will contribute to the nursing body of knowledge. It also helps nurses and other health-care professionals, and the patients’ families in reinforcing the most effective coping strategies and promoting the quality of care.