Person-centred care in rheumatology nursing in patients undergoing biological therapy : An explorative and interventional study

Aim: The overall aim was to explore and evaluate rheumatology nursing from a person-centred care perspective in patients undergoing biological therapy. Methods: This thesis focuses on patients with chronic inflammatory arthritis (CIA) who were undergoing biological therapy at a rheumatology clinic in Sweden. Papers I and II had an explorative descriptive design with a phenomenographic approach. The 40 participants were interviewed about their dependence on or independence of a nurse for the administration of their infusions or injections. Paper III had a randomized controlled design involving 107 patients in the trial. The objective of the intervention was to replace every second monitoring visit at a rheumatologist-led clinic by a visit to a nurse-led rheumatology clinic, based on person-centred care. Paper IV had an explorative descriptive design with a qualitative content analysis approach. Interviews were conducted with 20 participants who attended the nurse-led rheumatology clinic. Findings: Dependence on a rheumatology nurse for administration of intravenous infusions was described as invigorating due to the regular contact with the nurse, which provided security and involvement (paper I). Independence of a nurse for subcutaneous injections was understood by the patients in different ways and was achieved by struggling to cope with injecting themselves, learning about and participating in drug treatment (paper II). Patients with stable CIA receiving biological therapy were monitored by a nurse-led rheumatology clinic without any difference in outcome when compared to monitoring carried out at a rheumatologist-led clinic, as measured by the Disease Activity Score 28. Replacing one of the two annual rheumatologist outpatient follow-up visits by a visit to a nurse-led clinic for the monitoring of biological therapy was found to be safe and effective (paper III). A nurse-led rheumatology clinic, based on person-centred care, added value to the follow-up care of patients with stable CIA undergoing biological therapy by providing a sense of security, familiarity and participation (paper IV). Conclusions: This thesis contributes a valuable insight into person-centred care as the core of rheumatology nursing in the area of biological therapy. The rheumatology nurse adds value to patient care when she/he gives patients an opportunity to talk about themselves as a person and allow their illness narrative to constitute a starting point for building collaboration, which encourages and empowers patients to be an active part in their biological therapy and become autonomous. A nurse who provides person-centred care and keeps the patients’ resources and needs in focus serves as an important guide during their healthcare journey