In about 150 words, substantively respond by adding to post below using at least 2 separate resources to
explain why you agree to the post, and don’t forget to reference your sources.
Post:
I work in the nephrology unit, we get a great deal of general medical surgical patients and I have witnessed or
been engaged with death quite often. It is hard to face death and accept it, for the family it is hard to accept
losing their loved ones. Sometimes, we get patients that are made do not resuscitate (DNR) and comfort care
as there is nothing more we can do for them from a medical point of view. We plan for them to be discharged
with inpatient hospice or hospice at home which is very helpful in the case where patients want to die in their
own home. Unfortunately, some do not make it out of the hospital alive. In providing comfort care, our priority is
to make the patient comfortable, making sure that he/she is pain-free and as well as taking care of the family
by providing support to them, anywhere from keeping a quiet environment, subtle relaxing music and making
sure that the family has warm beverages.
As a part of their job, health professionals, especially nurses, are often exposed to dying patients and death
(Ek et al., 2014; Şahin et al., 2016). Nurses are responsible for communicating positively with patients and their
families, as well as ensuring symptom management, improving life quality, and providing psychological and
social support to both patients and their families in the treatment of dying patients (Browall, Melin-Johansson,
Strang, Danielson, & Henoch, 2010; Ek et al., 2014).
This experience has helped me view life as very valuable and view death as a part of life but it is hard to see
someone taking his/her last breath, no matter what the circumstance is. I found it very important to take into
consideration the patient’s faith when approaching death & respect the time left for the patient to spend quality
time with the family. Depending on the patient’s belief and religion, getting the chaplain involved will help with
spiritually supporting the family and the patient. As a nurse there is nothing more satisfying than seeing a pt
going home feeling healthy again, but when someone dies there is a feeling of hopelessness and sadness.
Understanding the dignity and uniqueness of each human being is needed in order to respect the attitudes and
stages of embracing death that may occur in patients and their families. Many feelings and behaviors, such as
frustration, aggression, nervousness, and impatience, may manifest in patients and their family members as a
result of the death and dying process, and respecting these reactions is essential for comprehensive treatment
(Salum et al., 2017)
References
Gurdogan, E. P., Kınıcı, E., & Aksoy, B. (2019). The relationship between death anxiety and attitudes toward
the care of dying patients in nursing students. Psychology, Health & Medicine, 24(7), 843–852.
Grams Salum, M. E., Kahl, C., Santos da Cunha, K., Koerich, C., Oliveira dos Santos, T., & Lorenzini Erdmann,
A. (2017). The process of death and dying: challenges in nursing care for patients and family members. Rev
Rene, 18(4), 528–535. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.15253/2175-6783.2017000400015

Sample Solution