Dimensions of Phenomenology in Exploring Patient's Suffering in Long-Life Illnesses: Qualitative Evidence Synthesis

Background: Patients' suffering has been increasingly investigated by health-care researchers especially in the chronically ill. Suffering is viewed as a progressive negative consequence that associated with pain, impaired self-esteem, and social alienation. This qualitative evidence synthesis aimed to provide further insights into the application of phenomenology in explaining suffering among patients with chronic illnesses.

Methods: Studies included in this qualitative evidence synthesis study were retrieved by searching from the following electronic databases: CINAHL, PubMed Central, and EBSCO.

Findings: Phenomenology is regarded as influential to generate in-depth evidence about suffering that are grounded in chronically ill patients' perspectives. The philosophical constructs of suffering suggested fundamental dimensions such as stress, distress, hopelessness, and depression along with pain. Evidence encompasses the entire manifestation of suffering in which all interrelated meanings are understood and referred to a unique structure. Hermeneutic phenomenology was adopted as an effective strategy to elucidate human experience leading to the discovery of the embedded meanings of life experience.

Conclusion: The phenomenological approach provides nursing research with the pathway to explore patients' suffering experiences in the chronically ill.