Completed Research Project
Implantable cardioverter defibrillators: A qualitative study of recipients’ and family caregivers’ experiences, concerns and needs
Investigators: McRae S, Williams
A, Nikoletti
S & Young J.
Funding: Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital Nursing
Service Research Scholarship ($5,000).
Abstract: There is evidence to suggest that people who have an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) and their caregivers experience psychological distress. This qualitative descriptive study explored the experiences, concerns and needs of recipients of ICDs and their caregivers who attended or did not attend a support group organised by a cardiac rehabilitation nurse at a public hospital located in Perth, Western Australia. Eleven recipients of ICDs and their caregivers participated in this study. The support group sessions were found to be highly beneficial to those who attended providing useful information, relieving feelings of isolation, and enabling long-term ICD recipients/carers the opportunity to support and mentor new recipients and carers. A reluctance to attend the support group was expressed by some of the younger recipients of ICDs who perceived that they could not relate to the issues experienced by older recipients who attended the group. There was also inaccessibility to the support group experienced by recipients and carers who lived in country areas. This study recommended that the frequency of the support group meetings be increased from two to four times per year; and that alternative strategies of support be developed for younger recipients and those that lived in country areas.
