Patient’s Transition Experiences from Hospital to Home after an Acute Cardiac Event

BACKGROUND: Care transition after hospital discharge is challenging for patients and their families. For post an acute cardiac event patients, the 0–14 days period is a vulnerable period. After hospitalization, patients and their families report having unmet information needs at a time of hospital discharge. It can increase the complication and hospital readmission. AIM: This study aim to explore the patient’s transition experiences from hospital to home after an acute cardiac event. METHODS: An exploratory qualitative research design with phenomenological approach was used in the study. The data were collected from April to July 2020, using semi-structured interviews with 15 patients diagnosed with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Transcribed interview data were thematically analyzed. RESULTS: There are five themes obtained from the study: Positive perception after an acute cardiac event, the changes experienced, the knowledge which was required, the support needs, and expectations and goals. CONCLUSION: Transition from hospital to home depends on the perceptions of the participants themselves. The experience of transitioning patients from hospital to home was influenced by the existence of support from family, spiritual meaning, and social environment to be able to adapt to health conditions. The finding of this study can assist the nurses in understanding better the needs of patients to prepare the care transition from the hospital to home.