Perioperative patient advocacy
having the patient’s best interests at heart
ANN-SOFIE SUNDQVIST
Medical Science with a specialization in Healthcare Science
Örebro Studies in Care Sciences 71 I
ÖREBRO 20172017
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ann-sofie sundqvist is a registered nurse since 1993 and a registered nurse anesthetist (RNA) since 2000. She has worked as a RNA in the Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery at Örebro University Hospital during her PhD studies at Örebro University. In 2012 she comple-ted a Master of Science in Nursing Sciences and has been registered as a doctoral student since then.
Patient advocacy is practiced by various health care professionals in promo-ting the well-being of patients. It is complex, and has in a general health care context been described as supporting the patients both physiologically and psychologically. It is also related to patient care that focuses on the patient’s needs and wishes, including informing, protecting, and speaking for patients. Perioperative patient advocacy has been described as not only being about critical decision making but also visible in all the small things that the nurses do for their patients. The overall aim of this thesis was therefore to get a dee-per insight into dee-periodee-perative patient advocacy by exploring its characteristics and consequences. It was also aiming to describe RNAs’ views of advocacy in anesthetic nursing through interviews and a questionnaire, and their advocacy actions and interactions through observations. Knowledge about the RNAs’ views of perioperative patient advocacy has been lacking, so hopefully, the findings of this research can contribute to a deepened understanding and new insight in their professional role.
I believed I could - So I did
issn 1652-1153 isbn 978-91-7529-187-1