Exploring the experiences and perceptions of haemodialysis patients observing Ramadan fasting: A qualitative study
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-2-2021
Abstract
BackgroundThe festival of Ramadan is a month of spiritual reflection for Muslims worldwide. During Ramadan, Muslims are required to refrain from eating and drinking during daylight hours. Although exempted from fasting, many patients undergoing maintenance haemodialysis (HD) opt to participate in this religious practice. Many studies have explored the effects of Ramadan on health outcomes, however, the exploration from patients' own point of view pertaining to this religious practice is lacking. Thus, we aimed to explore the experiences and perceptions of Muslim HD patients observing Ramadan fasting from three HD centres in Klang Valley, Malaysia.MethodAn exploratory phenomenology qualitative study was conducted whereby subjects were purposively selected based on previous experience in observing Ramadan fasting. Face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted, and study data were analyzed thematically and iteratively coded using a constant comparison method.ResultsFour major themes emerged from the data, namely: (i) ``fasting experiences'', (ii) ``perceived side effects of fasting'', (iii) ``health-seeking behavior'' and, (iv) ``education and awareness needs''. Patients expressed the significance of Ramadan fasting as well as the perceived impact of fasting on their health. Additionally, there is lack of health-seeking behaviour observed among patients thus, raising needs for awareness and education related to Ramadan fasting.ConclusionsFindings of this study shed light on patients' experiences and perceptions regarding Ramadan fasting which warrants the needs for an effective communication between patients and health care practitioners through a structured-Ramadan specific education program.
Keywords
Ramadan fasting, Haemodialysis, Qualitative, Perception, Experiences
Divisions
fac_med
Funders
Universiti Putra Malaysia [GP-IPS: 9615300]
Publication Title
BMC Nephrology
Volume
22
Issue
1
Publisher
BioMed Central
Publisher Location
CAMPUS, 4 CRINAN ST, LONDON N1 9XW, ENGLAND