Meaning of Possessions Brought to the Hospital by Elderly Orthopedic Patients

Abstract

  The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning of personal possessions brought to the hospital by elderly individuals undergoing orthopedic surgery of the lower limbs. Specifically, we sought to compare these possessions with semantic classification of “the meaning of things” as per the work of Csikszentmihalyi et al. pertaining to household items. We identified 11 semantic classifications associated with five categories as per Csikszentmihalyi et. al. There were three meaning classes including “things that incite compassion,” “things that help facilitate healing and are encouraging,” and “things that can have a connection with the outside” that were extracted as <things that bring mental stability>. Five meaning classes extracted as <things with which one’s lifestyle can be continued at home> included “things that continue to be used during hospitalization,” “things that help one sleep,” “things that can help keep the body clean,” “things that have been retained from a prior hospitalization,” and “handmade things.” Finally, we extracted three meaning classes including “self-help tools for compensating for pain and restricted range of motion,” “things that help comprehend the position and situation of other things when body motion is restricted,” and “things that help comprehend the position and timing of things at night” as <things for understanding the situation and movement restrictions>. Our findings suggest that when preparing for hospitalization, information should be provided in accordance with the characteristics of illnesses and hospitalized living. Furthermore, nursing assistance for recuperative environments is important and should be provided.