Patient Death Experience.

[2k15NurseExtern4u]

I love to hear stories of memorable patient deaths. Sometimes it's just eerily cool to watch the process unfold (not to be a creep about it). Im still a nursing student so I only have 1 experience so far. Patient had stage 4 cancer with mets to the liver, brain, and a completely occluded left lung. Patient was a super goner, but family was in complete denial and believed she would "pull through." Patient finally expired during one of my clinical rotation and I felt SO relieved for her. Such a crappy way to leave this world. Thats all I got so far..

Please, share a memorable patient death experience that you have had.

[OrganizedChaos, LVN]

Sometimes it's just eerily cool to watch the process unfold (not to be a creep about it). Im still a nursing student so I only have 1 experience so far. Patient had stage 4 cancer with mets to the liver, brain, and a completely occluded left lung. Patient was a super goner

That's just unacceptable language & it seems to me you have a weird fascination in death/dying.

Im sorry for your loss. I meant no offense. I simply meant to convey that my fascination with death is a rather morbid curiosity. Forgive me if I wasn't politically correct in my word choice. Have a great day.

That's even more weird.

[littlepeopleRNICU]

Every patient death I have had has been memorable. I used to work adults, and two of my patient deaths were from code situations. The other two were women who were both end stage renal disease, lost all placement for access(after YEARS of hemodialysis), and had decided to stop care since the medical teams had exhausted all sites for placement. The dying process usually takes anywhere from a week to three in those cases(from what I frequently saw on that floor). Both women chose to stay inpatient while essentially waiting to die. It was, both morbid and fulfilling, knowing that I was taking care of these women as they reached their last days. The saddest part about both of their stories was, that although we knew the time was cutting very near on the days they each died, family would not come visit, even though reached out to by multiple staff. In each scenario, I stayed with the patient until they each died so they wouldn't be alone.

My NICU deaths have been some of the most gut-wrenching experiences of my whole nursing career. Some of them have happened in a controlled setting...they've been in a situation where the family has decided to (rightfully) withdraw care. These situations are hard, even though everyone knows it is for the better of the baby and prevents them from current suffering and from the zero quality "life" they would have if they didn't die on their own. Others have been codes that we couldn't save. One of the most memorable is when I had one patient we coded 6 times throughout the shift before her family finally came to the hospital, witnessed what a code really was, and decided for us to stop during one around 5 am.

[TheGooch]

Im sorry for your loss. I meant no offense. I simply meant to convey that my fascination with death is a rather morbid curiosity. Forgive me if I wasn't politically correct in my word choice. Have a great day.

I'll not forgive you for your "politically incorrect" word choices. You have a great day.

[TheGooch]

I'm a Hospice Nurse, so please spare me the "Have a great day" condescension.

You have much to learn regarding death and the dying process. Those of us who witness it on a regular basis would most assuredly never think of it as "eerily cool".

I'm not going to describe any patient deaths to you, because I don't think you have a healthy interest in the process. Quite frankly, your presentation sends a shiver up my spine, and if you were in a room with any of my patients as they were transitioning or actively dying, I would ask you to leave. Immediately.

I hope you outgrow the "let's slow down and look at the train wreck" mentality soon. Dying is a journey, not a fantasy for puerile minds.

Thank you for your comments. As a family member who has watched a LO die I would rather have someone like you in the room while it happened then someone like the OP. Her morbid fascination with the death process is quite disturbing. I wonder if other nurses who "helped" their patients along in the process and who are sitting in prison had the same kind of morbid fascination.

[OrganizedChaos, LVN]

Double post

[NursesRmofun, ASN, RN]

I would not even refer to a dying pet as a super goner or describe the dying process as eerily cool.

I agree 100%.

[Farawyn]

I'm kind of creeped out by this topic and the way it was presented and I don't get creeped easily.

[Jensmom7, BSN, RN]

I'm kind of creeped out by this topic and the way it was presented and I don't get creeped easily.

I'm with you, Far-it gave me the jeebies.

I think we may see her story as an episode of "Criminal Minds" at some point. 😱

[OrganizedChaos, LVN]

I'm with you, Far-it gave me the jeebies.

I think we may see her story as an episode of "Criminal Minds" at some point. 😱

Lol. Or her local news! Yikers. >.

[JustBeachyNurse, LPN]

Well for the sake of the fact that we are on an anonomyous online forum, you should be able to relax a little. Thanks for your input. Have a great day.

Don't be so certain about anonymity. You'd be surprised who might already have identified you. I've done presentations at my nursing school and at the principal and lead instructor's suggestion was able to identify quite a few members that posted here. Simply by attitude, syntax and choice of words.

I find your choice of words "super goner" to be rather disrespectful of the dead and dying not to mention unprofessional.

[Whispera, MSN, RN]

Bea, while your word choices can be interpreted as incorrect, I don't feel that you intend any disrespect. I think you're new to such things and expressing excitement over what you're experiencing. Every new experience has the potential to be mind-boggling, and being with someone who is going through the death process is one of the most boggling.

My first experience was as a nursing student who worked in a hospital on weekends. They had jobs for nursing students there. One moment the man was breathing gently and his vitals were barely there. The next he was gone. The nurse who helped me prepare the man's body so his family could come in to be with him said she sometimes felt the spirit whoosh out of a patient's body during death. I've never had that experience, but I think it would be wonderful to feel such closeness to someone/God/the universe.

I worked hospice awhile. I still think being with someone who is dying is an honor, privilege, and one of the most spiritual things a person can experience...

[2k15NurseExtern4u, BSN, RN]

Every patient death I have had has been memorable. I used to work adults, and two of my patient deaths were from code situations. The other two were women who were both end stage renal disease, lost all placement for access(after YEARS of hemodialysis), and had decided to stop care since the medical teams had exhausted all sites for placement. The dying process usually takes anywhere from a week to three in those cases(from what I frequently saw on that floor). Both women chose to stay inpatient while essentially waiting to die. It was, both morbid and fulfilling, knowing that I was taking care of these women as they reached their last days. The saddest part about both of their stories was, that although we knew the time was cutting very near on the days they each died, family would not come visit, even though reached out to by multiple staff. In each scenario, I stayed with the patient until they each died so they wouldn't be alone.

My NICU deaths have been some of the most gut-wrenching experiences of my whole nursing career. Some of them have happened in a controlled setting...they've been in a situation where the family has decided to (rightfully) withdraw care. These situations are hard, even though everyone knows it is for the better of the baby and prevents them from current suffering and from the zero quality "life" they would have if they didn't die on their own. Others have been codes that we couldn't save. One of the most memorable is when I had one patient we coded 6 times throughout the shift before her family finally came to the hospital, witnessed what a code really was, and decided for us to stop during one around 5 am.

Thanks for sharing! I dont know if I would even be able to handle NICU death situations because it is SO hard to watch the family go through such a difficult time. I hate code situations in most circumstances because alot of the time they are so brutal and hard on the patient, especially on the frail and elderly and on those who have zero to very minimal quality of life even they are resuscitated. There are alot of things worse than death..