Descriptive qualitative study of breathlessness and its management of Turkish individuals with self-reported heart failure
Aims To explore the experiences of individuals with heart failure, with a specific focus on elucidating the full spectrum of symptoms experienced and their subjective descriptions of breathlessness and self-management strategies regarding socio-cultural-behavioural context. Design Qualitative descriptive study underpinned by critical realism and situation-specific theory of heart failure self-care. Setting Participants from various settings (hospitals and community) in Southeastern Türkiye. Participants Adults reporting heart failure and breathlessness. Methods Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 20 individuals (11 women and 9 men). Data were audio-recorded and transcribed. Participants were asked to describe their symptoms, experiences with breathlessness, self-management strategies and health needs from their perspectives. The interview data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Results There were a range (31 physical and 7 psycho-social behavioural) of sympto
