- How prevalent is the feeling of guilt among ICU nurses when faced with sudden patient deaths?
- How does this feeling affect their mental health and work performance?
- What factors contribute to either intensifying or alleviating this feeling?
- What strategies can be implemented to support nurses and reduce the negative impact of guilt?
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Intensive Care Nurses’ Experiences Related to Dying Patients: A Qualitative Study
- December 2021
- OMEGA--Journal of Death and Dying 88(2):003022282110518
- DOI: 10.1177/00302228211051856
- By Selin Keskin Kızıltepe, Zeliha koç
[Abstract
Objective: To describe intensive care nurses' experiences of caring for dying patients. Method: This study was carried out between July 15, 2019, and September 15, 2019, in a university hospital's intensive care unit. We conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of 14 intensive care nurses to describe their experiences related to patient deaths. Qualitative thematic analysis was used to identify, analyse and report the identified themes. Results: Four themes were identified: (I) Emotions experienced the first time their patient passed away; (II) feelings and thoughts on impact of death; (III) difficulties encountered when providing care and (IV) coping methods with this situation. Conclusion: Despite the passage of time, nurses are unable to forget their death experiences when they first encountered. They oftentimes use ineffective methods of coping and were negatively affected physically and emotionally.]