PATIENT EDUCATION PRIOR TO THE IMPLANTATION OF VASCULAR PROSTHESIS.

Background: The goal of this study was to find out: (a) how patients were educated about the nature of their disease, treatment modes and complications in preoperative and postoperative periods, (b) patients' emotions before the surgery and their causes. Methods: 15 structured interviews were performed taking place on the day 1 or 2 after admission to the surgical clinic. The criterion for being included in the study was to obtain the score of at least 24 MMSE (Mini Mental State Examination) points and to meet the established indication criteria for the surgery. The hospital's ethical committee and all participants, who had been informed about the purpose of the study, agreed with the study. The data analysis by means of open coding was performed by three independent researchers, who subsequently defined six categories. Results: 15 patients participated in the study. All participants had previous experience with hospitalization, 11 patients had undergone a surgery. All the patients stated unanimously that they had been made acquainted with the nature of the disease and the options of treatment. 10 patients were made acquainted with the facility operation and organizational matters and received information relating to the length of hospitalization in the intensive care unit (ICU) and on a standard ward. 4 patients were informed about the length of convalescence. 11 patients expressed verbally their fear of the surgery (the result of the surgery; pain and complications). Conclusions: The study confirms the necessity of an adequate preoperative education performed by a complete multidisciplinary team, particularly taking into account individual patients' needs. According to the results, the patients would welcome not only verbal education but also the opportunity to use other educational resources, e.g. brochures, information maps, e-learning, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]