District nurses' lived experiences of meeting significant others in advanced home care

Abstract

The aim of this study was to illuminate the meanings of district nurses' lived experiences of meeting significant others in the home when giving advanced home care to patients. The data was collected through 10 audio-taped narrative focus-group interviews with 36 district nurses and interpreted using a phenomenological hermeneutic approach. Three themes emerged. The first theme, Feeling close, consists of three subthemes: Being available, Sharing understanding and Being aware. The second theme, Mediating strength, contains the subthemes Being a resource and Sharing trust. Being emotionally influenced is the third theme and involves the subthemes Experiencing emotional distress and Experiencing emotional gratitude. Meeting significant others as a district nurse in advanced home care means creating and maintaining a trustful relationship with significant others, both on a personal and family level, aiming to illuminate and respond to their needs and desires. The district nurses strive to reach a mutual understanding and co-operate to mediate support. Being a district nurse in advanced home care is both emotionally demanding and emotionally rewarding.