Experiences of mothers of infants with congenital heart disease before, during, and after complex cardiac surgery. Heart Lung 2013;42(6):399-406
Date
09/26/2013Pubmed ID
24064303DOI
10.1016/j.hrtlng.2013.08.009Scopus ID
2-s2.0-84886952850 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 46 CitationsAbstract
OBJECTIVE: Experiences of mothers of infants undergoing complex heart surgery were explored to build evidence-based family-centered interventions.
BACKGROUND: Congenital heart disease is the most frequent birth defect in the United States and is common worldwide.
METHODS: Eight mothers recalled through journal entries their experiences of the days before, during, and after their infant's surgery and shared advice for other mothers. Colaizzi's phenomenological method was utilized for data analysis. A validation survey of seven additional mothers from a support group occurred via email.
RESULTS: Six themes were identified and validated: Feeling Intense Fluctuating Emotion; Navigating the Medical World; Dealing with the Unknown; Facing the Possibility of My Baby Dying, Finding Meaning and Spiritual Connection, and the umbrella theme of Mothering Through It All.
CONCLUSIONS: Through a clearer understanding of experiences as described by mothers, health-care providers may gain insight as to how to better support mothers of infants undergoing heart surgery.
Author List
Harvey KA, Kovalesky A, Woods RK, Loan LAAuthor
Ronald K. Woods MD Professor in the Surgery department at Medical College of WisconsinMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
Attitude to HealthCardiac Surgical Procedures
Data Collection
Emotions
Female
Heart Defects, Congenital
Humans
Infant
Infant, Newborn
Mothers
Professional-Family Relations
Self-Help Groups
United States
