Abandoned in No Man’s Land: A Qualitative Study on Patient Experiences While Waiting for Elective Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery

Coronary artery bypass grafting is the primary treatment for patients with ischemic heart disease and multivessel disease to improve survival, symptoms, and quality of life. However, patients waiting for coronary artery bypass grafting surgery often struggle with advanced age, frailty, and inactivity, leading to anxiety and uncertainty. Psychological distress, pain, and sedentary behavior can worsen their condition. Prehabilitation, combining exercise, education, and support, aims to improve readiness for surgery, but its success depends on understanding patients’ perspectives, while this study explores the experiences of patients awaiting coronary artery bypass grafting surgery to contribute insights into the design of future prehabilitation programs. This qualitative study aimed to explore the phenomenon of waiting to have elective coronary artery bypass grafting surgery based on patients’ lived experiences. The study used a hermeneutic–phenomenological approach and conducted purposely selected in-depth interviews with one female and nine men the day before surgery. Analysis of the data revealed themes based on experiences of being abandoned in no man’s land, balancing between feeling imprisoned and hoping to escape, preparing to fight, and feeling weak and dependent on social support. The phenomena this study uncovered underscore the complexities inherent to the lived experience of waiting for coronary artery bypass grafting surgery. Understanding and integrating these aspects when planning prehabilitation programs for patients waiting for coronary artery bypass grafting surgery have substantial clinical relevance, particularly for enhancing healthcare practice when developing targeted interventions.