The Liberation Procedure Decision-Making Experience for People With Multiple Sclerosis

Murray, Cynthia Lynn and Ploughman, Michelle and Harris, Chelsea and Hogan, Stephen and Murdoch, Mihelle and Stefanelli, Mark (2014) The Liberation Procedure Decision-Making Experience for People With Multiple Sclerosis. Global Qualitative Nursing Research, 1. ISSN 2333-3936

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Abstract

Despite the absence of scientific evidence demonstrating the efficacy of the “liberation procedure” in treating multiple sclerosis (MS), thousands of MS patients worldwide have undergone the procedure. The study objective was to explore the experience of liberation procedure decision making for individuals with MS. Fifteen adults in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, each participated in an in-depth interview. The data analysis revealed three groups of people: “waiters,” “early embracers,” and “late embracers.” Using van Manen’s hermeneutic phenomenological approach, we identified three themes each in the stories of the early and late embracers and four themes in the waiters’ stories. A characteristic of the late embracers and waiters was skepticism, whereas desperation set the embracers apart from the waiters. With a deeper understanding of the experience, nurses can be more attuned to the perspectives of MS patients while helping them make informed decisions about undergoing the liberation procedure.

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