A model of the process of transformation in primary care for people living with chronic illnesses

Objectives: The objective of the research was to construct a conceptual framework that explains the process of personal transformation within a primary care context for people living with chronic illnesses.Methods: A literature search of articles published from 1990 to 2007 in CINAHL, ERIC, Healthstar, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, dissertation abstracts and SocINFO databases, was conducted to identify qualitative research studies investigating personal change in chronic illness or disability. Five hundred and fifty-six articles were identified; the researchers conducted a metasynthesis of a subgroup of these articles whose focus was on transformation in primary care (n = 5).Results: The metasynthesis project presents a model of the conceptualizations of transformation. Transformation in chronic illness is presented as a process of learning about self and the chronic illness in an iterative and continually changing manner. The primary care context has its greatest influence on critical reflection, which occurs in th...