Psychology Majors?

EricJRN, MSN, RN · Apr 12, 2009

I was recently thinking about two families that I cared for a few months apart. Both families had newborns with trisomy 18, a condition that isn't associated with a high probability of long-term survival. Although the diagnoses were the same and both families advocated for aggressive medical treatment, I viewed the families in completely different ways.

At the time that I took care of the first baby, I was a newer nurse with little experience in terminal illnesses. Our unit was very busy at that time, and as much as I wanted to, I didn't get to invest a lot of time becoming acquainted with the family. My perceptions about the baby's life and the family's decisions were very much based on separate knowing.

By the time that the second T18 infant was born, I had several more months of experience and the pace of the unit wasn't so overwhelming. I spent much more time getting to know the family. I found that I wasn't thinking so much of the statistics found in pediatrics texts, but rather about how difficult it would be for a family to make such gripping life-and-death decisions about a child. I was showing much more connected knowing at that point.

Have you had an experience where your rapport with a patient affected how you viewed his/her situation?

PERSERVERANCE · Apr 12, 2009

actually, i have unfortunately, but i have also learned to view things from another's viewpoint and that not everything is black and white, no matter what you may see yourself. there are always circumstances that manipulate reality or what you might think is reality. i completely understand what you are saying and thank you so much for the reply.