scholarly journals Effects of End-of-life Care Stress, Calling, and Resilience on End-of-life Care Performance - A Descriptive Correlational Study

Author(s):  
Ji-Young Kim ◽  
Eun-Hi Choi

Abstract Background: Prolonging the end-of-life process means that the duration of health care work increases and the management of death is delegated to health care providers by patients’ families. Thus, it is important to explore measures to enhance the quality of end-of-life care by identifying the predictors thereof. End-of-life care should be people-centred, relieving serious health-related suffering, be it physical, psychological, social, or spiritual. Nurses who provide end-of-life care usually spend the most time with dying patients, administering care to help patients who wish to die with dignity; therefore, end-of-life nursing care is highly significant. Methods: This study was conducted on nurses of 500-bed or larger university hospitals in city D and province C from 20 August to 10 September 2020 using a structured questionnaire. A total of 213 nurses with a minimum clinical career of one year and at least one EOLC experience participated. The final analysis sample consisted of 206 nurses. Descriptive analysis, Pearson’s correlation coefficients, ANOVA, t-test, and multiple-regression analysis were used to analyse the data.Results: This study found that end-of-life care performance was significantly positively correlated with end-of-life care stress [r = .253, p < .001], sense of calling [r = .424, p < .001], and resilience [r = .397, p < .001]. End-of-life care stress [β = .185, p = .003], sense of calling [β = .259, p < .001], resilience [β = .252, p < .001], and working in a hospice ward [β = .140, p = .041] or intensive care unit [β = .218, p = .008], as opposed to the emergency department, were identified as predictors of end-of-life care performance. These factors explained 28.3% of the variance in the end-of-life care performance in this study.Conclusions: Boosting the sense of calling and resilience and reducing the end-of-life care stress among nurses providing palliative care can improve overall end-of-life care performances. Subsequent studies should develop and evaluate interventions and programs that could improve these factors to ensure a positive change in health care and enhance the quality of end-of-life care in hospitals.

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin Relyea ◽  
Brooke MacDonald ◽  
Christina Cattaruzza ◽  
Denise Marshall

Schizophrenia is a serious chronic mental illness that results in marginalization and stigma for sufferers. It is the seventh leading cause for disability worldwide. The symptoms of the illness, including hallucinations, delusions, and extremely disordered thinking and behavior, may also introduce barriers to accessing treatment, education, housing, and employment. Little is known about end-of-life care for individuals with schizophrenia. To address this gap, a scoping review was conducted to enhance understanding of hospice and palliative care for patients with schizophrenia. From this scoping review, 342 unique titles and abstracts were identified through a search of 20 databases, including 11 social science databases, 6 medical databases, and 3 gray literature databases. A total of 32 articles met the inclusion criteria and the following 4 themes were identified: Stigma affecting quality of care and access to care; Issues related to consent and capacity for the patient’s end-of-life care decisions and to appoint substitute decision makers; Best practices for psychosocial interventions, pharmacology, family and health-care collaborations, goals of care, setting, and smoking; and Barriers to care, including setting, communication, provider education, and access to care. The review suggests the importance of mandatory interdisciplinary training practices and policy standards outlining cooperative communication across health-care providers. It highlights gaps in evidence-based research on psychosocial interventions and collaborative frameworks to enable the provision of quality end-of-life care for individuals with schizophrenia.


Author(s):  
Harvey Max Chochinov ◽  
Susan E. McClement ◽  
Maia S. Kredentser

The concept of dignity continues to receive attention in health care, with particular implications for end-of-life care. This chapter reviews current conceptualizations of dignity, integrating medical, philosophical, and ontological perspectives. The centrality of dignity to palliative care is discussed, exploring empirical findings, which examine what dignity means to patients and families in the context of illness and end-of-life care. The chapter provides an overview of validated tools, evidence-based therapies, and practical ‘everyday’ communication skills that health-care providers in diverse clinical settings can use to enhance patient dignity. Suggestions are provided for extending existing research into the notion of dignity as it relates to vulnerable groups, and how interventions aimed at supporting patient dignity can impact family members. Dignity subsumes many key aspects of comprehensive care, which can guide health-care providers towards improving end-of-life experiences for patients and families.


2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 308-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frances R. Nedjat-Haiem ◽  
Iraida V. Carrion ◽  
Krystana Gonzalez ◽  
Kathleen Ell ◽  
Beti Thompson ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Gloria Duke

End - of - life care is encumbered with many complex issues that can impede quality of life, especially in populations for which little is known. This study addresses spirituality and preferences for last days of life in persons born in Japan and living in eastern and south central Texas. Descriptive, qualitative methods were used for data collection and data analysis. Two major themes emerged for spirituality: Spirituality as Culture and Universality of Spirituality, and three major themes reflected preferences for the last days of life: Environmental Peace and Comfort, Interconnectedness, and Communication is Key. Nurses and health care providers can use this evidence to facilitate quality of life for these persons and their loved ones to achieve a peaceful an d dignified death. K.


2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 132-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harriet Preston ◽  
Iris Cohen Fineberg ◽  
Pauline Callagher ◽  
Douglas J Mitchell

Increasing emphasis is being placed on the need for advanced care planning (ACP) at the end of life. The Preferred Priorities for Care (PPC) document is a patient-held record promoted by the End of Life Care Strategy as an ACP tool to promote discussion and communication amongst patients, family and health care providers. However, little research exists into evaluating its effectiveness or exploring patient and carer views, particularly in non-malignant disease. Because the majority of patients with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) lose verbal communication, early discussion of patients’ wishes and preferences, a central aspect of ACP, is vital. This study examined MND patients’ bereaved relatives’ experiences of using the PPC document and their perceptions about its impact on end-of-life care using qualitative methods. Key findings adding to existing literature were that the PPC document was felt to have little impact on end-of-life care amongst this patient group and that there was a perceived lack of awareness of the document amongst health care professionals (HCPs), in particular hospital staff. This was felt to limit the effectiveness of the document. This has obvious implications for practice, looking at awareness amongst HCPs and ways to improve this situation, particularly in light of the current pressures to meet patient preferences at the end of life.


2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. e81-e91
Author(s):  
Renea L. Beckstrand ◽  
Jasmine B. Jenkins ◽  
Karlen E. Luthy ◽  
Janelle L. B. Macintosh

Background Critical care nurses routinely care for dying patients. Research on obstacles in providing end-of-life care has been conducted for more than 20 years, but change in such obstacles over time has not been examined. Objective To determine whether the magnitude scores of obstacles and helpful behaviors regarding end-of-life care have changed over time. Methods In this cross-sectional survey study, questionnaires were sent to 2000 randomly selected members of the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. Obstacle and helpful behavior items were analyzed using mean magnitude scores. Current data were compared with data gathered in 1999. Results Of the 2000 questionnaires mailed, 509 usable responses were received. Six obstacle magnitude scores increased significantly over time, of which 4 were related to family issues (not accepting the poor prognosis, intrafamily fighting, overriding the patient’s end-of-life wishes, and not understanding the meaning of the term lifesaving measures). Two were related to nurse issues. Seven obstacles decreased in magnitude, including poor design of units, overly restrictive visiting hours, and physicians avoiding conversations with families. Four helpful behavior magnitude scores increased significantly over time, including physician agreement on patient care and family access to the patient. Three helpful behavior items decreased in magnitude, including intensive care unit design. Conclusions The same end-of-life care obstacles that were reported in 1999 are still present. Obstacles related to family behaviors increased significantly, whereas obstacles related to intensive care unit environment or physician behaviors decreased significantly. These results indicate a need for better end-of-life education for families and health care providers.


Author(s):  
Sriram Yennurajalingam

Culture play a significant role in the care of patients receiving Palliative care. Understanding and managing cultural differences in end-of-life care is important as misunderstanding can result in under-treatment and unnecessary suffering for the patient and their care providers. Therefore better understanding can improve patient–physician communication and potentially improve patients’ quality of life, coping, and facilitate patients to make informed decisions and set appropriate priorities with regard to treatment and end-of-life care. This chapter discusses key cultural issues in palliative care, including the concepts of nondisclosure, the importance of the use of a medical interpreter, and the importance of an interdisciplinary team.


2012 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 608-618 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shigeko (Seiko) Izumi ◽  
Hiroko Nagae ◽  
Chihoko Sakurai ◽  
Emiko Imamura

Despite increasing interests and urgent needs for quality end-of-life care, there is no exact definition of what is the interval referred to as end of life or what end-of-life care is. The purpose of this article is to report our examination of terms related to end-of-life care and define end-of-life care from nursing ethics perspectives. Current terms related to end-of-life care, such as terminal care, hospice care, and palliative care, are based on a medical model and are restrictive in terms of diagnosis and prognosis. Using codes of ethics for nurses as a framework, we attempt to identify people to whom nurses are responsible to provide end-of-life care and develop a definition of end-of-life care that is more inclusive and applicable to a broader range of people who would benefit from end-of-life care by nurses and other health-care providers.


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