욕창 환자들의 질병 체험에 관한 현상학적 연구

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe the illness experience of patients with pressure ulcer. Methods: A phenomenological methodology was used for the study. The data were collected by individual in-depth interview with seven participants with pressure ulcer during 2013~2014. All interviews were audio-taped and verbatim transcripts were made for the analysis. The data were analyzed using Colaizzi's phenomenological method. Results: All participants had underlying disease, such as spinal paralysis and diabetes. Average period of having pressure ulcer was 18 months, ranged from 3 to 36 months. A total of seven theme clusters were derived from the analysis; unexpected wound, inherent vulnerability to infection, reversal of the treatment policy, unpleasant and strange feeling of wound, sweeping fear and helplessness, socioeconomic burden, and healing through specific actions and reflection. The participants faced various contradictory and paradoxical situations in managing their pressure ulcers as well as underlying diseases in their everyday life. However, they slowly overcome these situations by strictly practicing concrete action-oriented strategies that they have learned through suffering and appreciating miraculous wound healing. Conclusion: The results of this study can help developing a patient-specific intervention program with sufficient emotional support by providing insights of the paradoxical illness experience of patients with pressure ulcer.