COPING PATTERNS AMONG BONE-MARROW TRANSPLANT PATIENTS - A HERMENEUTICAL INQUIRY

Bone marrow transplantation (BMT) has recently become the treatment of choice for a number of malignancies. This procedure is highly technic al, involving the use of radiation and chemotherapy to destroy the pat ient's diseased bone marrow and with it functions of the entire immune system. It is a process with toxic effect that are experienced by all patients to varying degrees. A great deal of research related to the physiological aspects of this procedure has already been done, but con siderably fewer studies have examined the physiological aspects of the BMT procedure from the patient's perspective. Knowledge about how BMT patients understand this process and cope with its effects is importa nt information for nurses taking care of these patients. The purpose o f the study was to describe in depth the patterns of meaning employed by patients in the hospital as they coped with the experience of their BMT. Eleven patients were interviewed from one to four times a week t hroughout their hospitalization. Hermeneutic analysis was used to iden tify five major themes: physiological functioning, alertness, attitude , social relationships, and spirituality. Implications from the findin gs for nursing practice are discussed.