Impact of Caring for Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Nurses’ Lives: A Qualitative Study

Objective: Advances in technology have improved survival rates for children with congenital heart disease (CHD), leading to additional surgery and longer hospital stays. Nurses are essential healthcare professionals involved in these challenging processes. This study aimed to explore the impact of c...

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Main Authors: Ayşe Ay, İlçim Ercan Koyuncu, Aylin Günay
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Galenos Publishing House 2025-08-01
Series:Mediterranean Nursing and Midwifery
Subjects:
Online Access:https://mediterr-nm.org/articles/impact-of-caring-for-children-with-congenital-heart-disease-on-nurses-lives-a-qualitative-study/doi/MNM.2024.24297
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author Ayşe Ay
İlçim Ercan Koyuncu
Aylin Günay
author_facet Ayşe Ay
İlçim Ercan Koyuncu
Aylin Günay
author_sort Ayşe Ay
collection DOAJ
description Objective: Advances in technology have improved survival rates for children with congenital heart disease (CHD), leading to additional surgery and longer hospital stays. Nurses are essential healthcare professionals involved in these challenging processes. This study aimed to explore the impact of caring for children with CHD on the lives of nurses. Method: A qualitative-descriptive research design was employed. The study was conducted with 15 nurses caring for children with CHD at a foundation university hospital in Turkey. Data were collected using a “demographic information form” and a “semi-structured interviews” through face-to-face interviews. Nurses were asked to discuss the positive and negative effects of caring for children with CHD on their own lives. The interviews were recorded and professionally transcribed. Two researchers thematically analyzed the transcripts using MAXQDA. The study was conducted using the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research criteria. Results: The average age of the nurses was 30.53±5.14 years, and 73.33% had more than 5 years of experience caring for children with CHD. The results of the individual interviews revealed five main themes and 14 subthemes. These main themes are (i) Strengthening knowledge and skills, (ii) Interaction with the child, (iii) Psychosocial empowerment, (iv) Emergence of negative impacts, and (v) Overcoming challenges in professional life. Conclusion: Caring for children with CHD positively and negatively impacts nurses’ lives. To mitigate the negative effects on nurses, providing physical and psychological support and empowerment are crucial.
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spelling doaj-art-e103d9b902194b4abb3703a7889d59592025-08-26T08:23:26ZengGalenos Publishing HouseMediterranean Nursing and Midwifery2791-79402025-08-015217018110.4274/MNM.2024.24297Impact of Caring for Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Nurses’ Lives: A Qualitative StudyAyşe Ay0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1574-4673İlçim Ercan Koyuncu1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7604-8447Aylin Günay2https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2238-0561Department of Pediatric Nursing, Başkent University Faculty of Health Sciences, Ankara, TurkeyDepartment of Pediatric Nursing, Başkent University Faculty of Health Sciences, Ankara, TurkeyDepartment of Surgical Nursing, Başkent University Faculty of Health Sciences, Ankara, TurkeyObjective: Advances in technology have improved survival rates for children with congenital heart disease (CHD), leading to additional surgery and longer hospital stays. Nurses are essential healthcare professionals involved in these challenging processes. This study aimed to explore the impact of caring for children with CHD on the lives of nurses. Method: A qualitative-descriptive research design was employed. The study was conducted with 15 nurses caring for children with CHD at a foundation university hospital in Turkey. Data were collected using a “demographic information form” and a “semi-structured interviews” through face-to-face interviews. Nurses were asked to discuss the positive and negative effects of caring for children with CHD on their own lives. The interviews were recorded and professionally transcribed. Two researchers thematically analyzed the transcripts using MAXQDA. The study was conducted using the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research criteria. Results: The average age of the nurses was 30.53±5.14 years, and 73.33% had more than 5 years of experience caring for children with CHD. The results of the individual interviews revealed five main themes and 14 subthemes. These main themes are (i) Strengthening knowledge and skills, (ii) Interaction with the child, (iii) Psychosocial empowerment, (iv) Emergence of negative impacts, and (v) Overcoming challenges in professional life. Conclusion: Caring for children with CHD positively and negatively impacts nurses’ lives. To mitigate the negative effects on nurses, providing physical and psychological support and empowerment are crucial.https://mediterr-nm.org/articles/impact-of-caring-for-children-with-congenital-heart-disease-on-nurses-lives-a-qualitative-study/doi/MNM.2024.24297childnursing carecongenital heart diseasequalitative research
spellingShingle Ayşe Ay
İlçim Ercan Koyuncu
Aylin Günay
Impact of Caring for Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Nurses’ Lives: A Qualitative Study
Mediterranean Nursing and Midwifery
child
nursing care
congenital heart disease
qualitative research
title Impact of Caring for Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Nurses’ Lives: A Qualitative Study
title_full Impact of Caring for Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Nurses’ Lives: A Qualitative Study
title_fullStr Impact of Caring for Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Nurses’ Lives: A Qualitative Study
title_full_unstemmed Impact of Caring for Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Nurses’ Lives: A Qualitative Study
title_short Impact of Caring for Children with Congenital Heart Disease on Nurses’ Lives: A Qualitative Study
title_sort impact of caring for children with congenital heart disease on nurses lives a qualitative study
topic child
nursing care
congenital heart disease
qualitative research
url https://mediterr-nm.org/articles/impact-of-caring-for-children-with-congenital-heart-disease-on-nurses-lives-a-qualitative-study/doi/MNM.2024.24297
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