The Meaning of Surviving Three Years after a Heart Transplant—A Transition from Uncertainty to Acceptance through Adaptation

Catharina Lindberg, Matilda Almgren, Annette Lennerling and Anna Forsberg
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Catharina Lindberg: Department of Health Sciences, Blekinge Institute of Technology, 374 35 Karlskrona, Sweden
Matilda Almgren: Care in High Tech Environments, Institute of Health Sciences at Lund University, 221 00 Lund, Sweden
Annette Lennerling: The Transplant Centre, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, 413 45 Gothenburg, Sweden
Anna Forsberg: Care in High Tech Environments, Institute of Health Sciences at Lund University, 221 00 Lund, Sweden

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 15, 1-11

Abstract: The rationale was to longitudinally follow-up interviews performed with heart recipients at their one-year examination in order to deepen the understanding of the meaning of surviving a heart transplant. The aim was to explore the meaning of surviving three years after a heart transplant compared to one year and to identify what constitutes the change process. A phenomenological–hermeneutic method was used. This multicenter study was carried out at the two hospitals in Sweden where heart transplants are performed. A total of 13 heart recipients who survived three years after a heart transplant were invited to participate in this three-year follow-up study and 12 accepted, 3 women and 9 men, with a mean age of 51.25 years. The naïve understanding revealed that the heart recipients strongly accepted their life situation and that time had enabled this acceptance of limitations through adaptation. The thematic structural analyses cover six themes illustrating the meaning of acceptance and adaptation, i.e., accepting life as it is, adapting to post-transplant limitations, adapting to a changed body, social adaptation, showing gratitude and trusting oneself and others. In conclusion, achieving acceptance and a solid sense of self-efficacy after heart transplantation is a time-consuming process that involves courage to face and accept the reality and adapt in every life dimension.

Keywords: heart transplantation; acceptance; adaptation; phenomenological-hermeneutic; qualitative; transition (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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