Conference Proceedings - School of Nursing & Midwifery - Trinity ...

School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin: 8 th Annual Interdisciplinary Research Conference
Transforming Healthcare Through Research, Education & Technology: 7 th – 9 th November 2007
Conference Proceedings
reactions. All subjects were interviewed in their own homes. A
target was to interview within 4-6 weeks of discharge from hospital
and prior to the commencement of any adjuvant therapy. All
interviews were recorded using an audiotape and transcribed
verbatim.
The transcripts were analysed using Giorgi’s (1975) method of
phenomenological analysis resulting in descriptive statements
representing the participants’ illness experiences. These include
statements common to most participants and others unique to
individuals. In order to determine if the data was demonstrating if
or how the experience changed over time this, thematic analysis
was combined with a phase analysis. Therefore each theme
identified has been placed within a time band, thus indicating
whether it occurs at a specific point or throughout the experience,
in which case it should be possible to demonstrate if or how it has
changed. Three time bands were created for this purpose, preoperative,
post-operative and post-discharge. The pre-operative
phase covers the time span from diagnosis to surgery; the postoperative
phase covers the period of hospitalisation after surgery
and the post discharge phase from the point of discharge until the
time of the interview approximately 4 weeks later. For the purposes
of this presentation only the post-discharge phase will be
considered.
Results – Post-discharge findings
To facilitate the presentation of the results, both the common and
unique descriptive statements have been grouped together in
categories that best capture the structure of the phenomenon of
having colorectal cancer and undergoing a bowel resection. Within
these categories themes have been identified as emerging from the
data to describe the illness experience and incorporate both the
common and unique statements (table 1). The identified themes
form a web of interconnections of experiences rather than a
chronological series of events.
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