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Supporting existential care with protected mealtimes: patients' experiences of a mealtime intervention in a neurological ward
Author(s) -
Beck Malene,
Birkelund Regner,
Poulsen Ingrid,
Martinsen Bente
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of advanced nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.948
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1365-2648
pISSN - 0309-2402
DOI - 10.1111/jan.13278
Subject(s) - intervention (counseling) , existentialism , calmness , focus group , medicine , psychology , nursing , interpretation (philosophy) , psychiatry , sociology , philosophy , epistemology , anthropology , computer science , programming language
Abstract Aim The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of patients who were admitted to the neurological ward during an intervention – inspired by Protected Mealtime – that changed the traditional mealtime practice. Background Mealtimes are busy events in hospitals and patients are often interrupted by high‐priority tasks (e.g. taking blood samples) while eating. Protected mealtimes is a British concept that changes the organizational structure of mealtimes and provides a focus on the mealtime by ceasing all non‐acute activities while patients are eating. Design Influenced by protected mealtimes and based on the British Medical Research Council ( MRC ) guidelines, a clinical intervention called Quiet Please was developed, modified and tested in a department of neurology in November 2014. Methods To evaluate the Quiet Please intervention, 13 semi‐structured interviews were conducted with patients who were admitted to the neurological ward. The interviews were recorded and transcribed. These data were thoroughly analysed and interpreted with inspiration from the French philosopher, Paul Ricouer. Findings Three themes were identified from the analysis and interpretation: (1) being powered by the bell; (2) being embraced by calmness and aesthetics and (3) being in a trust‐bearing agreement. Conclusions Patients experienced mealtimes as meaningful events that nourished them in an existential manner because the calming and aesthetically pleasing environment made them feel embraced and allowed them to reflect on the day for a while. The mealtime change, influenced by protected mealtimes, made the patients feel recognized as humans and established positive mealtime experiences that were considered professional and trust bearing.