The Heart as a Transplanted Organ: Unspoken Struggles of Personal Identity Among Adolescent Recipients
- PMID: 30595188
- DOI: 10.1016/j.cjca.2018.10.006
The Heart as a Transplanted Organ: Unspoken Struggles of Personal Identity Among Adolescent Recipients
Abstract
In adult heart transplant recipients, a transformation of the self has been observed simultaneous to the "emotional integration" of the heart following transplantation. However, the experiences of adolescents following heart transplantation are virtually unexplored within the current literature. Our qualitative findings address this gap and explore struggles with personal identity in adolescent heart transplant recipients. Twenty-seven heart transplant patients (67% female, age range: 12 to 18 years) from a large teaching hospital participated in 1-on-1 interviews, which were transcribed verbatim and coded, using methods of constant comparison within a grounded- theory approach. Emergent themes were identified and refined through team consensus. Many participants identified emotional and psychological concerns regarding accepting foreign hearts as their own. This manifested in a range of experiences such as sadness or guilt regarding the death of the donor. Adolescent participants also pondered the potential acquisition of personal qualities or characteristics of the donor. Many participants speculated extensively about the donor and "longed for" donor information. Findings point to the meaning-making processes that adolescent heart transplant patients endure as they grapple with the presence of a foreign, life-giving organ within their bodies and the potential impact on their psychosocial well-being. This paper encourages health care professionals to initiate discussions before and following transplantation that address adolescents' concept of self and offers recommendations for clinical care.
Copyright © 2018 Canadian Cardiovascular Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Similar articles
-
'My Transplanted Self': Adolescent recipients' experience of post-traumatic growth following thoracic transplantation.J Heart Lung Transplant. 2023 Mar;42(3):327-334. doi: 10.1016/j.healun.2022.11.011. Epub 2022 Dec 6. J Heart Lung Transplant. 2023. PMID: 36543705
-
Life experiences of adult heart transplant recipients: a new life, challenges, and coping.Qual Life Res. 2021 Jun;30(6):1619-1627. doi: 10.1007/s11136-021-02763-y. Epub 2021 Feb 1. Qual Life Res. 2021. PMID: 33523403
-
Heart transplants: Identity disruption, bodily integrity and interconnectedness.Health (London). 2015 Nov;19(6):578-94. doi: 10.1177/1363459314560067. Epub 2014 Nov 30. Health (London). 2015. PMID: 25445153
-
The experiences of adults who are on dialysis and waiting for a renal transplant from a deceased donor: a systematic review.JBI Database System Rev Implement Rep. 2015 Mar 12;13(2):169-211. doi: 10.11124/jbisrir-2015-1973. JBI Database System Rev Implement Rep. 2015. PMID: 26447040 Review.
-
Living Donor Kidney Transplantation: Improving Education Outside of Transplant Centers about Live Donor Transplantation--Recommendations from a Consensus Conference.Clin J Am Soc Nephrol. 2015 Sep 4;10(9):1659-69. doi: 10.2215/CJN.00950115. Epub 2015 Jun 26. Clin J Am Soc Nephrol. 2015. PMID: 26116651 Free PMC article.
Cited by
-
Adjustment to a New Heart: Concept Analysis Using a Hybrid Model.Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2021 Mar 5;26(2):89-96. doi: 10.4103/ijnmr.IJNMR_9_20. eCollection 2021 Mar-Apr. Iran J Nurs Midwifery Res. 2021. PMID: 34036054 Free PMC article.
-
Patient-reported outcome measures in pediatric solid organ transplantation: Exploring stakeholder perspectives on clinical implementation through qualitative description.Qual Life Res. 2021 May;30(5):1355-1364. doi: 10.1007/s11136-020-02743-8. Epub 2021 Jan 14. Qual Life Res. 2021. PMID: 33447959 Free PMC article.
-
The Meaning of Surviving Three Years after a Heart Transplant-A Transition from Uncertainty to Acceptance through Adaptation.Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020 Jul 28;17(15):5434. doi: 10.3390/ijerph17155434. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020. PMID: 32731539 Free PMC article.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical
Miscellaneous