"Embracing the present and fearing the future": The meaning of being an oldest old woman in a rural area
2014 (English)In: International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being, ISSN 1748-2623, E-ISSN 1748-2631, Vol. 9, article id 25217Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
In Western countries, the number of older people receiving home nursing care is increasing, and in rural areas they are at additional risk because of the distance between people and health care facilities. The aim of this study was therefore to illuminate the meaning of being an oldest old woman living alone in a rural area and receiving home nursing care. A sample of 11 oldest old women living in rural areas in the middle of Norway was chosen for this study. Narrative interviews were conducted, and the data were analyzed using the phenomenological hermeneutic method. After a naïve reading and a structural analysis of the text, we identified four themes: being satisfied with life, being thankful, feeling vulnerable, and feeling secure. The comprehensive understanding implied that being an oldest old woman living alone in a rural area meant living in the intersection between embracing the present in solitude and fearing the future with additional declining health. Living in this complex situation meant to enjoy the present, but still fear the future, as the oldest old women knew their present life situations were limited. This challenging emotional situation meant using their inner strength by trying to be optimistic and seeing opportunities in present life, even if losses were many and extensive. By using their inner strength in facing losses and declining health, the oldest old women managed to appreciate aloneness as solitude, and find new meaning in life.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Informa Healthcare , 2014. Vol. 9, article id 25217
Keywords [en]
Home nursing care, oldest old, phenomenological hermeneutics, rural
National Category
Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology Nursing
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-25056DOI: 10.3402/qhw.v9.25217ISI: 000209589400001PubMedID: 25361532Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-84908497890OAI: oai:DiVA.org:hig-25056DiVA, id: diva2:1134765
2017-08-212017-08-212018-03-13Bibliographically approved