Svedlund M, Danielson E, Norberg A
Department of Health and Social Care, Mid Sweden University, Ostersund, Sweden.
Intensive Crit Care Nurs. 1999 Feb;15(1):34-43. doi: 10.1016/s0964-3397(99)80063-9.
The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning of lived experiences of caring for people affected by acute myocardial infarction. Thirty-four registered nurses at a Coronary Care Unit in the north of Sweden narrated their experiences of this specialized care of inpatients. The interview texts were transcribed and then interpreted using a phenomenological-hermeneutic method, inspired by the philosophy of Ricoeur. Two groups of texts were identified. One comprised 'narratives about the patient' within which were the themes: 'distancing oneself from what is happening' and 'showing oneself as vulnerable'. The other was 'narratives about caring', with the themes: 'reading of', 'adapting', 'coming close' and 'helping'. Various views on caring were disclosed and interpreted with reference to Martin Buber's philosophy. A comprehensive understanding of caring as oscillations between the poles distance and relation was formulated.
