Perception of Family Support in a Group of Patients with a Diagnosis of Acute Myocardial Infarction

Abstract

Objective: to explore the perception of the family support in a group of patients that experienced an acute myocardial infarction (AMI), during their stay in a general hospital located in Mexico City. Material and methods: qualitative study, four thematic axes were inquired and six patients with identified diagnosis of AMI were interviewed in the coronary unit of the General Hospital of Mexico “Dr. Eduardo Liceaga”, between December 2007 and June 2009. Results: before the AMI: fear and confusion were shown in both female and male caused by uncertainty. In men, there was denial as a defense mechanism. In women, worrying for the unfulfilled responsibilities and sense of death associated to fear. Stay in emergency room: for different reasons men received attention earlier than women. Stay in the coronary unit: married men received the visit of their wives regularly and of their children sporadically; women were visited by their relatives sporadically. Perception of family support: only women perceived sense of imbalance, in a context in which the disease is a crisis that disrupts family functioning and had a great impact on all members. Conclusions: it was found a type of family response to the disease known as centripetal trend, which presents increase of cohesion on the members of the family, where the patient is the center of the family interactions.