Patient experience of elective general surgery: An integrative review

Aim

To identify and synthesise the current evidence on elective general surgery patient experience of care.

Design

An integrative review reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines.

Data sources

CINAHL, Medline, Embase, and PsycInfo databases were searched for primary peer-reviewed studies published in English between 2010 and January 2023.

Review methods

Studies on the experiences of elective general surgery patients (aged 16 and above) published in English were included. Studies that focused on emergency surgical patient experiences or proxy-reported experiences were excluded. Titles and abstracts of retrieved studies were screened according to predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Data were extracted and quality assessment of the included articles was undertaken using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT). Data were analysed using Thomas and Harden’s thematic synthesis framework.

Results

About 36 studies were included. Six themes were identified: (i) daring to care; (ii) seeing the same people; (iii) being a decision partner in my own care; (iv) keeping me in the loop; (v) receiving information from the right person, at the right time; and (vi) seeking comfort.

Conclusion

Review findings resonate with key dimensions of patient-centred care and demonstrate that treating a patient as a unique person, involving patients in care, and providing information can influence general surgery patients’ perceptions of their hospital experience. These findings could inform areas for improvement in nursing practice, to enhance general surgery patients’ experience.