Nursing care about patient with external fixator

The name of this bachelor thesis is: Nursing care of patients with the external fixator. The external fixator is a metal construction above the surface of the skin that connects implants introduced into a bone. The purpose of external fixation is mainly the stabilisation of fractures. The thesis has two main parts: the theoretical and the practical parts. The theoretical part contains basic information on the anatomy of bones, fractures and the therapy of fractures. Further, it deals with the history of external fixation, nursing and rehabilitation care of patients with the external fixator. The practical part includes a research investigation. We set three objectives and posed three research questions within the scope of the investigation. The objective of the thesis was to find out the specifics of nursing care of patients with the external fixator, whether nurses have information about care of patients with the external fixator and how patients perceive the external fixator. We posed the following research questions: What are the specifics of nursing care of patients with the external fixator? Do nurses have information about the care of patients with the external fixator? What problems do patients with the external fixator deal with? The research investigation was conducted in the qualitative method. The research set consisted of the total of 14 respondents - 7 patients and 7 nurses working in the traumatology, orthopaedics and surgery departments. Information was obtained by means of semi-structured interviews and processed into case studies. For reasons of clarity, some data were put into tables. The results formed a basis on which our questions were answered. The specifics of nursing care of patients with the external fixator include the aseptic re-bandaging and additional assistance with care of oneself. Nurses have information about the care of patients with the external fixator, even though that the number of patients with external fixation is in most departments where this research investigation was conducted, rather low. The most serious problems that patients have to deal with are those of comfort. The research investigation forms a framework in which the standard of nursing care of patients with the external fixator was made that surveys the course of the nursing care. I have compiled an information brochure for patients that contains the basic information concerning the therapeutic regime