"Are you better?" a qualitative study of the meaning of recovery

Details

• Personal Author:
  Beaton DE ; Bombardier C ; Katz JN ; Tarasuk V ; Wright JG
• Description:
  Purpose. Research into the meaning of illness has often focused on an individual's transition into a state of being ill, for example the adoption of a sick role. The question "Are you better?" addresses the transition out of this state and is fundamental to the patient-clinician relationship, guiding decisions about treatment. However, the question assumes that all patients have the same meaning for "being better." The purpose of this study was to explore the meaning of the concept of recovery (getting better) in a group of people with upper limb musculoskeletal disorders. Methods. Qualitative (grounded theory) methods were used. Individual interviews were conducted with 24 workers with work-related musculoskeletal disorders of the upper limb. The audiotaped interviews were transcribed and coded for content. Categories were linked, comparisons made, and a theory built about how people respond to the question "Are you better?" Results. The perception of "being better" is highly contextualized in the experience of the individual. Being better is not only reflected in changes in the state of the disorder (resolution) but could be an adjustment of life to work around the disorder (readjustment) or an adaptation to living with the disorder (redefinition). The experience of the disorder can be influenced by factors such as the perceived legitimacy of the disorder, the comparators used to define health and illness, and coping styles, which in turn can influence being better. Conclusion. Two patients could mean very different things when saying that they are better. Some may not actually have a change in disease state as measured by symptoms, impairments, or function. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Coping Skills Decision Making Mental Health Musculoskeletal Diseases Occupational Health Safety Surveys And Questionnaires
• Keywords:
  Adaptation Author Keywords: Treatment Effects Coping-behavior Decision-making Employee-health Health-surveys Injuries Medical-treatment Mental-processes Musculoskeletal-system-disorders Outcome Evaluation Patient Perception Psychological-factors Psychological-responses Qualitative-analysis Repetition Strain Injuries Repetitive-work Worker-health Workers

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• ISSN:
  2151-4658
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  270-279
• Volume:
  45
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20041725
• Citation:
  Arthritis Care Res 2001 Jun; 45(3):270-279
• Contact Point Address:
  D. E. Beaton, BScOT, PhD, Institute for Work & Health, 250 Bloor Street East, Suite 702, Toronto, Ontario M4W 1E6, Canada
• Email:
  beatond@smh.toronto.on.ca
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2001
• Performing Organization:
  The Institute for Work and Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  19990930
• Source Full Name:
  Arthritis Care & Research
• End Date:
  20030929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:364d841ed3df6ccf8ff058d78811fceaaa3d7c1321bf25dd5fc8d1dc2dcd976e0ea77e8790ee3919a1012073415f3bfeb78b951b0fa5b1a93fc8cb4389cd3f20
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/194212/cdc_194212_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 212.38 KB ]