“Good palliative care” in intensive care units: A nursing perspective

Research
By Diane Guay, Cécile Michaud, Luc Mathieu
English

Caring for dying patients is part of daily practice for nurses working in intensive care units (ICUs). However, few studies have documented what nurses consider to be “good palliative care” in this context. This phenomenological study was conducted in four phases and was designed to understand how the provision of “good palliative care” is expressed according to nurses’ perspectives. Data were collected through group interviews and observation sessions, followed by individual interviews and group validation sessions. “Good palliative care” is expressed by the consideration of six dimensions of the person, as proposed by Gastmans et al. (1998): physical, relational, psychological, moral, social, and spiritual.

Keywords

  • palliative care
  • intensive care
  • good care
  • phenomenology
  • nursing
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