Uncertainty, the Overbearing Lived Experience of the Elderly People Undergoing Hemodialysis: A Qualitative Study.
Robab Sahaf, Ehteram Sadat Ilali, Hamid Peyrovi and 2 others
PMID 28097174WHAT IT FOUND
Elderly people on hemodialysis described uncertainty as not knowing if they were improving, fearing death and the machine, and losing control of daily plans when dialysis schedules changed.
Key findings
01Uncertainty emerged as a main theme with obscure future, fear of the unknown, and regularity induced irregularity.
02Participants described fear of death, dialysis equipment, and the dialysis ward.
03Participants said lack of information caused fear and stress, and schedule changes made them feel constantly on call and unable to plan daily life.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study included only nine elderly patients from 2 hospitals in Iran. Participants had to be able to communicate, speak Persian, and have no cognitive disorders. The authors noted that interviews were difficult because older participants could not speak for a long time and scheduling was challenging. It is a qualitative study of lived experience, so it does not test whether information or education changes uncertainty.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that education or better information reduces uncertainty. The study only describes elderly people's lived experiences of uncertainty. It did not test any intervention.