The meaning of encounters with health professionals in primary health care as reported by patients with medically unexplained symptoms

Abstract

Medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) afflict up to 30% of patients who visit primary health care (PHC) services. The approach of health professionals is most important in encounters with these patients to accomplish a caring and effective treatment. The aim of the present study was to elucidate the meaning of patients’ lived experiences of encounters with PHC professionals when suffering from MUS. The study was based on ten narrative interviews with informants aged 24–61 years. Phenomenological hermeneutics was used as the method of analysis. Three themes emerged: Striving for understanding, Expecting to be taken seriously and Fear of being abandoned. The result can be seen as a call for health professionals to invite patients into an interpreting process to create a joint understanding of the patient’s body experiences and life situation. Thus the patient might also become reconciled with suffering and move on in life.