Open AccessElderly Patients’ Perception of Pain Management after Open and Reduction Internal Fixation Surgery
Author(s) -
Sharon M. Whyte-Daley
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
the qualitative report
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.335
H-Index - 35
ISSN - 2160-3715
DOI - 10.46743/2160-3715/2018.3394
Subject(s) - medicine , internal fixation , qualitative research , coping (psychology) , physical therapy , surgery , clinical psychology , social science , sociology
Little is known about pain and pain management in older adults who experience open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) surgery. This qualitative descriptive phenomenological study explored two research questions: (a) What are the perceptions of pain and pain management in patients between 65 and 75 years of age, 48 hours after ORIF surgery in a community hospital? (b) What are the perceptions of adaptation after ORIF? A pilot study included four patients in two units of a Southern California hospital, followed by open ended, semi-structured interviews with 10 participants. Four themes emerged: (a) elderly patients experience different patterns of pain and coping mechanisms; (b) elderly patients experience pain after gaining consciousness from ORIF surgery; (c) effective pain management requires patients’ empowerment and opportunity to participate in pain management decisions; (d) elderly patients perceive adaptation as a process of change and acceptance. Multimodal pain management strategies, including regional opioids and systemic anti-inflammatories, could reduce post-operative, generalized bio-physiological stress experienced by elderly patients.