Patient dignity in nursing : a phemomenological study

Abstract

This research is concerned with patient dignity in nursing. It proposes the introduction of the concept of Perceptual Adjustment Level (PAL) in order to resolve the problem of the definition of patient dignity and its maintenance within nursing care. The aims of the study are to identify how patients and nurses perceive patient dignity, to investigate the extent to which patient dignity is maintained and to identify nursing care activities in maintaining patient dignity. The implications of the findings of this study for nursing education and the development of policy on clinical practice are also examined. The literature review revealed a paucity of research on patient dignity. There was no clear definition of dignity that could be understood by both nurses and patients during their day to day interaction. Little was known of the maintenance of patient dignity and its influencing factors. A qualitative methodology utilising a phenomenological approach was used. A total of 102 patients and 94 nurses from medical and surgical wards in three hospitals within the United Kingdom were interviewed using semi-structured interview techniques. Although neither patients nor nurses specifically defined patient dignity, they came up with similar categories in terms of how they perceived patient dignity: privacy, respect, communication, the need for information, involvement in care, independence, patients' choice, form of address, decency and confidentiality. Control was only mentioned by patients. Although there was congruence between how the patients and nurses described patient dignity, it emerged that nurses tended to operate on different levels from how patients perceived the maintenance of their dignity. While nurses utilised primarily their own perception of dignity to maintain patient dignity, it was discovered that hospitalised patients went through a process of adjustment of their notion of dignity and came to a level they could accept. As a result a new concept termed Perceptual Adjustment Level (PAL) is proposed. Patients felt dignified if events matched with this level. This research has, therefore, proposed a tentative definition of patient dignity as the fulfilment of patients' expectations or needs in terms of values within each patient's perceptual adjustment level taking into account the hospital environment. The need for assessing patients to discover their perceptual adjustment level has been highlighted. A number of patients were satisfied with how their dignity was maintained but a significant number were not. Ways of improving the maintenance of patient dignity have also been proposed. In order to maintain patient dignity, nurses should consider six questions: "what?" signifies the needs of dignity which should be met. "Why?" highlights the importance of full explanations of the purpose of tasks carried out on patients, and whether it matters to the patient. "Who?" relates to who is going to perform the task on her or him? "Where?" considers whether privacy will be ensured when the tasks will be done and "how?" sensitively the tasks will be done? It is also important to make the patient aware "when?" tasks will be carried out. The main factors that influenced the maintenance of patient dignity are revealed and implications for nursing practice, management, education and research are discussed