Nurses desensitized to death?

Nurses General Nursing

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im doing a research on older RN getting desensitized to patients death...

is it normal? are we still humane?

Specializes in Acute Care Pediatrics.

I will never, ever, get used to watching a child die. Ever.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.
AMEN sister! Death is often the best chance a person has at peace.

I wish I could like this MORE.

I think it's presumptive to think that a nurse's reaction to death is inhumane...really, it IS the completion of the life cycle, there's really no way around it despite advances in medicine; the most I can do is make the person comfortable-that should be humane ENOUGH.

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Nope. No longer humane. Once I saw a few patients die, I started torturing kittens for recreation.

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Specializes in Emergency, Telemetry, Transplant.
Nope. No longer humane. Once I saw a few patients die, I started torturing kittens for recreation.

Geez, I never though about the connection, but now this does explain why I advocate not neutering your pet.

(in all seriousness, please do spay/neuter)

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Specializes in ICU.

A, or an " older" nurse ( I will be 34 in 2 weeks) but I have worked in ICU and hospice. The 2 areas where death happens the most.

I see death as a part of life now I guess. Some deaths hve been more difficult ( developing relationships with patients, or ones who were young, or suddenly died when they weren't " supposed" to.

otherwise, yes, it was not unnerving to out a body in the freezer at the morgue. My friends not in the health field couldn't fathom. But it was a part of my occupation .

am I I humane because death of patients doesn't rock me or sometimes even phase me much anymore?

no, I don't think so.

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Specializes in Pedi.

Death is a fact of life. Every life ends in death. I am a pedi nurse. 4 children who I worked with in some capacity have died in the last 2 months. I did not cry about any of them nor did I feel sad. 3 out of the 4 of them had end stage cancer and there was no hope. Pursuing further treatment options to prolong the quantity of their lives without preserving the quality would have been cruel.

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Specializes in ICU.

After experiencing a certain number, they kind of blend together. Certain aspects of each death may stick in your mind, or if they were a long termer and you got to know them personally. I can only imagine that being a cop and going to traffic accidents has got to be harder then dealing with death in a medical institution.

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Specializes in LTC Rehab Med/Surg.

We become desensitized to the smells, sights, and sounds of human misery, in order to function at our jobs.

Why would death be any different?

Nobody would consider asking an MD that question.

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Specializes in LTC Rehab Med/Surg.
Death is a fact of life. Every life ends in death. I am a pedi nurse. 4 children who I worked with in some capacity have died in the last 2 months. I did not cry about any of them nor did I feel sad. 3 out of the 4 of them had end stage cancer and there was no hope. Pursuing further treatment options to prolong the quantity of their lives without preserving the quality would have been cruel.

If I feel sadness at the death of the patient, it's almost always for the family who survives. THAT is what I have a hard time coping with. Watching the sorrow of the family.

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Specializes in Anesthesia, ICU, PCU.

Valar morghulis.

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Specializes in LTC Rehab Med/Surg.
Valar morghulis.

I learned something new tonight.

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I am entering my nursing program this fall. I have yet to experience death of a person whole caring for them so i cannot comment. I can only hope that i can be strong enough to hold it together while showing compassion to the patients visitors. Right now, my biggest fear is with infants. It will be interesting to see how exactly i handle any situation of death, but if one thing is for sure, I WILL work with the medical team in doing everything possible to save them. If all fails, i will handle with pride and dignity and be thankful they died under my care. I would rather them die under my care surrounded by a team that is working around the clock than die home, alone, and scared. I will be at peace knowing i/we did everything we could.

Check back in with me after a while and i will tell you about my experience and how things may or may not have changed from this post! Hahahahah.

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