[How to intervene effectively with a dying patient]

Abstract

Nurses are in a strategic position to meet the needs of the dying patient. However, when confronted with death, nurses often utilize avoidance behaviors, such as: tending to the dying patient only if a technique is required; initiating conversations on casual topics or directing the conversation towards the patient's "health"; requesting consults to avoid talking about dying; and unnecessarily overmedicating the patient. This paper explains the rights and needs of the dying patient and describes associated nursing interventions. For example, the dying patient has the primordial right to choose whether or not to receive treatment. For nurses to intervene effectively, they must learn to manage their own emotions relating to death. A strong theoretical understanding of the dying process must be acquired. They must also develop internal strengths and receive help from various resources. By doing so, nurses reinvest their shared life experiences and apply them to other dying patients continuously refining their conceptual model of loss. Through verbal and non-verbal cues, nurses transmit profound messages to their patients. Some efficient nursing interventions consist of: providing basic care and medications to prevent terminal suffering; offering an attentive and reassuring presence; respecting the contemplative phases; listening for latent messages in conversations; understanding symbolic language; respecting family dynamics; allowing family members to choose physical and psychosocial interventions to improve the patient's comfort; frequently visiting the patient and intensifying their presence; permitting the dying patient to verbalize fears and anxieties; and consistently offering tenderness, empathy, acceptance, warmth and respect. As death nears, scientific and technological aspects of nursing become less important for the patient, and the art of sincere human empathy becomes paramount.