death and dying

puzzler · Jan 6, 2001

Having worked in Labor & Delivery for 12 years I had to learn to handle the death of both newborns and adults.

In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with crying but you still must be able to function and do whatever is necessary to assist the patient and family. There have been so many times that I have functioned very calmly and professionally until the family was gone, then lost it completely.

Now I work as a 3-11 supervisor in a very small hospital. I see every patient every day and come to know them all. We have many patients we care for on and off for years. When we lose one of these patients it is like losing a friend.

I have never found a "tool" that was of any help in this area. Your way of dealing with death is a very personal area. I have been known to "browbeat" and harrass doctors to get them to provide adequate pain relief for those patients in need. The area of pain management is making great strides and the patients are finally benefiting from this research.

Death is a part of life and the circumstances surrounding the individuals death will often dictate how I handle it.

Good luck with your research in this area.

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Sheryl

If you enjoy word puzzles come visit me at www.CrosswordsForNurses.com

bayoubelle65 · Jan 6, 2001

I work in a Critical Care Unit where I am often present when a person dies. And you have hit on a topic that reaching into my soul. I consider it a priviledge to be present when a life ends and make it my business to make sure that it is done with the untmost dignity that can be obtained in the individual situation. No matter how often we attempt to use modern science to prolong life sometimes God says "No" and it is then our role as a nurse to become the patient advocate and make sure that our patients meet a death that is both as painless as possible and that mirrors the dignity of the person in life. To the best of my abilit I attempt to make sure that a patient never dies alone. And afterward, the family's spiritual needs are foremost in my mind. I have gotten cards, letters, and even flowers from families thanking me for helping their loved ones to die with dignity. And I sit back and think to myself...what an awesome responisibility I have taken on. And what a priviledge it is to interceed at this time in someone's life when they most need it. Nurses must rely on their faith to keep them going when an outcome is not expected or seems totally unfair. We as nurses have noone we can talk to about the frustration and hurt that comes when we feel helpless at the loss of a patient but other nurses. This is how we can help our profession grow in the face of our sworn enemy...death. Death is a fact of life..it is how we approach death that makes a difference. It can often be a beautiful experience if we let it. I think that nurses who are uncomfortable with the concept of dying have a hard time dealing with the patient and thier families and this makes for an awkard situation. Comfort comes with experience and faith. And those of us who are good at handling these situations should be willing to interceed on the behalf of the patient when we see our fellow nurses struggling with patients and families in crisis. I could go on forever, but I think that in your research you will find that nurses are angels of God, with special gifts to use on his behalf. But, then it would mean that we would have to give up control...and I have met very few nurses willing to do that ).

Originally posted by macky:
I am currently studying the attitudes and anxiety of nurses towards death and dying. This is to determine and assess whether nurses of today provide adequate care for the said clients.If there are instruments that can be used with the said topics try sending. Thank you and More power.

Tim-GNP · Jan 7, 2001

If you are interested in an actual INSTRUMENT that measures death anxiety and attitudes, try these:

* Death Anxiety Scale, written by P.J. Handal, A. Tolar and M. Reznikoff.

*Fear of Death Scale by D. Lester

*Death Anziety Scale by D.I. Templer

*The Death Anxiety Scale (Nehrke Modification) by M.F. Nehrke

*Attitude Toward Dying and Death Index by J.T. Mathieu and J.A. Peterson.

*Dimensions of Death Anxiety by L.D. Nelson and C.C. Nelson

*Checklist of Death Attitudes by W.M. Swenson

All have been tested for reliability and validity, if you look up the authors in CINAHL, I am sure you will have no trouble finding them. IF you have access to a local library, look for a copy of the book "Research Instruments in Social Gerontology." It is a wonderful book full of neat scales. Good luck on your study!