Community palliative care nurse experiences and perceptions of follow-up bereavement support visits to carers.
Summary of "Community palliative care nurse experiences and perceptions of follow-up bereavement support visits to carers."
Community (district) nurses (CNs) are well positioned to provide follow-up home visits to bereaved families and carers of their recently deceased palliative clients. An Australian survey of CN's (n = 58, response rate 29%) described their experiences of bereavement support visits, perceptions of their role in bereavement care and their professional support needs. Although positive experiences were commonly reported, with 95% of participants considering bereavement follow-up visits as consistent with their role, 53% found the visits difficult for reasons such as the nurse or client not understanding the purpose, the CN's excessive personal identification with the client's situation, the emotional intensity of visits, and lack of confidence or skills despite prior training. The nature and quality of the CN's prior relationship with the bereaved family was an important determinant of the visits' success. Results highlight the value of bereavement support visits, while identifying professional development needs. Managing emotionally intense episodes should receive priority in preparing CN's for this challenging role.
Affiliation
School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Western Sydney, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia.
Journal Details
This article was published in the following journal.
Name: International journal of nursing practice
ISSN: 1440-172X
Pages: 332-9
Links
- PubMed Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22845632
- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1440-172X.2012.02046.x
Medical and Biotech [MESH] Definitions
Home Care Services
Community health and NURSING SERVICES providing coordinated multiple services to the patient at the patient's homes. These home-care services are provided by a visiting nurse, home health agencies, HOSPITALS, or organized community groups using professional staff for care delivery. It differs from HOME NURSING which is provided by non-professionals.
Nursing, Team
Coordination of nursing services by various nursing care personnel under the leadership of a professional nurse. The team may consist of a professional nurse, nurses' aides, and the practical nurse.
Palliative Care
Care alleviating symptoms without curing the underlying disease. (Stedman, 25th ed)
Insurance, Nursing Services
Insurance providing benefits for the costs of care provided by nurses, especially nurse practitioners and nurse clinicians.
Hospice Care
Specialized health care, supportive in nature, provided to a dying person. A holistic approach is often taken, providing patients and their families with legal, financial, emotional, or spiritual counseling in addition to meeting patients' immediate physical needs. Care may be provided in the home, in the hospital, in specialized facilities (HOSPICES), or in specially designated areas of long-term care facilities. The concept also includes bereavement care for the family. (From Dictionary of Health Services Management, 2d ed)
PubMed Articles
Aims and objectives. To describe the experiences of nurses who provided bereavement follow-up with families after the death of a child or a pregnancy loss and explore facilitators, barriers and cha...
The Tie That Binds: Relationships in Perinatal Bereavement.
Relationship is a central concept to the delivery of quality perinatal bereavement care. This article explores relevant bereavement research and clinically based writings about relationship in the car...
The objective of this qualitative study was to explore the perceptions and needs of families who care for a child with a life-limiting disease. Considering the heterogeneity of life-limiting diseases...
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate how a primary care reform, which aimed to promote interprofessional and interorganizational collaborative practices, affected patients' experiences of the core dimensions of pri...
Clinical Trials
Effectiveness of a Standardized Bereavement Intervention in Primary Care
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of "Primary Bereavement Care" (PBC) -a standardized bereavement intervention- delivered by family physicians (FP), in widows.
Trial of Family Focused Grief Therapy in Palliative Care and Bereavement
The purpose of this study is to learn how well family therapy works if given while a family member is being treated for a serious illness and whether it helps their family to continue meet...
Multidisciplinary Inpatient Palliative Care Intervention
Palliative care is believed to improve care of patients with life-limiting illnesses. This study evaluated the impact of a multi-center randomized trial of a palliative care team intervent...
Consequences of Conjugal Bereavement in Adults
Bereavement refers to the expected reactions and sadness associated with the loss of a loved one. It has been reported that the loss of a spouse is rated as the major life stressor among...
Home Blood Pressure Monitoring Trial
Design: Community based randomised trial with follow up after 12 months Participants: 360 patients admitted with stroke or TIA within the past 9 months will be recruited from the wards or...
