South African critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices
Background: Care of patients at the end-of-life (EOL) may be influenced by the experiences, attitudes and beliefs of nurses involved in their direct care. Aim: To investigate South African critical care nurses' experiences and perceptions of EOL care. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: So...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Published: |
2014
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/19970 |
| _version_ | 1848750179659808768 |
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| author | Langley, G. Schmollgruber, S. Fulbrook, P. Albarran, J. Latour, Jos |
| author_facet | Langley, G. Schmollgruber, S. Fulbrook, P. Albarran, J. Latour, Jos |
| author_sort | Langley, G. |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Background: Care of patients at the end-of-life (EOL) may be influenced by the experiences, attitudes and beliefs of nurses involved in their direct care. Aim: To investigate South African critical care nurses' experiences and perceptions of EOL care. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: South African critical care nurses completed a modified version of the ‘VENICE’ survey tool. Data were collected concerning: attitudes towards EOL care; involvement in EOL decision-making; and beliefs about EOL practices. Results: Of 149 surveys distributed, 100 were returned (response rate 67%). Seventy-six percent stated that they had had direct involvement in EOL care of patients, but a minority (29%) had participated in EOL decision-making processes. Whilst most nurses (86%) were committed to family involvement in EOL decisions, less than two thirds (62%) reported this as routine practice. When withdrawing treatment, around half (54%) of the respondents indicated they would decrease the inspired oxygen level to room air, and the majority (84%) recommended giving effective pain relief. Continued nutritional support (84%) and hydration (85%) were advocated, with most nurses (62%) indicating that they were against keeping patients deeply sedated. Most respondents (68%) felt patients should remain in intensive care at the end of life, with the majority (72%) supporting open-visiting, no restriction on number of family members visiting (70%), and the practising of religious or traditional cultural EOL rituals (93%). Conclusions: The involvement of Johannesburg critical nurses in EOL care discussions and decisions is infrequent despite their participation in care delivery and definite views about the process. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T07:32:43Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-19970 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T07:32:43Z |
| publishDate | 2014 |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-199702017-09-13T13:48:58Z South African critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices Langley, G. Schmollgruber, S. Fulbrook, P. Albarran, J. Latour, Jos Background: Care of patients at the end-of-life (EOL) may be influenced by the experiences, attitudes and beliefs of nurses involved in their direct care. Aim: To investigate South African critical care nurses' experiences and perceptions of EOL care. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: South African critical care nurses completed a modified version of the ‘VENICE’ survey tool. Data were collected concerning: attitudes towards EOL care; involvement in EOL decision-making; and beliefs about EOL practices. Results: Of 149 surveys distributed, 100 were returned (response rate 67%). Seventy-six percent stated that they had had direct involvement in EOL care of patients, but a minority (29%) had participated in EOL decision-making processes. Whilst most nurses (86%) were committed to family involvement in EOL decisions, less than two thirds (62%) reported this as routine practice. When withdrawing treatment, around half (54%) of the respondents indicated they would decrease the inspired oxygen level to room air, and the majority (84%) recommended giving effective pain relief. Continued nutritional support (84%) and hydration (85%) were advocated, with most nurses (62%) indicating that they were against keeping patients deeply sedated. Most respondents (68%) felt patients should remain in intensive care at the end of life, with the majority (72%) supporting open-visiting, no restriction on number of family members visiting (70%), and the practising of religious or traditional cultural EOL rituals (93%). Conclusions: The involvement of Johannesburg critical nurses in EOL care discussions and decisions is infrequent despite their participation in care delivery and definite views about the process. 2014 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/19970 10.1111/nicc.12026 restricted |
| spellingShingle | Langley, G. Schmollgruber, S. Fulbrook, P. Albarran, J. Latour, Jos South African critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices |
| title | South African critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices |
| title_full | South African critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices |
| title_fullStr | South African critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices |
| title_full_unstemmed | South African critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices |
| title_short | South African critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices |
| title_sort | south african critical care nurses' views on end-of-life decision-making and practices |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/19970 |