Advocating for Peaceful Death with Dignity
plato is often credited with saying that the most important thing
to do in life is to practice dying. Let’s face it, we are all dying. Many of us have problems talking about death and dying with our patients and so the conversation is avoided, but there are times when we, as nurses, just need
to listen and in listening the answer becomes clear. It is always important for me to try to incorporate all aspects of holistic nursing into the daily care
of patients, but it seems particularly important at the end of life. It is at the end of life when we really just need
be present, to listen, and to lead with our heart. Surprisingly, advocating for your patients and leading with your heart rather than your head may be met with resistance in this scientific world of western medicine, but I
have found that my heart has been made bigger for the effort of trying. This is one of my experiences:
Joan was a 90 year old retired nurse, who was admitted to the Senior Behavioral Health unit due to her primary care physician’s concern over her 17 pound weight loss and her “failure to thrive.” She was kyphotic,
to the extent, that if she attempted
to sit upright in a chair, her face was practically on her lap. She suffered from severe back pain. She weighed only 75 pounds. Her admitting diagnosis was depression. Soon after arriving on our unit, her oxygen saturation began to drop into the 80s. An echocardiogram and chest x-ray were ordered and she was started on continuous oxygen.
When I first entered her room, I saw a cachectic woman lying in a fetal position on an air mattress. Her respiratory rate was 24-30 breaths per
Advocating for Peaceful Death with Dignityplato is often credited with saying that the most important thingto do in life is to practice dying. Let’s face it, we are all dying. Many of us have problems talking about death and dying with our patients and so the conversation is avoided, but there are times when we, as nurses, just needto listen and in listening the answer becomes clear. It is always important for me to try to incorporate all aspects of holistic nursing into the daily careof patients, but it seems particularly important at the end of life. It is at the end of life when we really just needbe present, to listen, and to lead with our heart. Surprisingly, advocating for your patients and leading with your heart rather than your head may be met with resistance in this scientific world of western medicine, but Ihave found that my heart has been made bigger for the effort of trying. This is one of my experiences:Joan was a 90 year old retired nurse, who was admitted to the Senior Behavioral Health unit due to her primary care physician’s concern over her 17 pound weight loss and her “failure to thrive.” She was kyphotic,to the extent, that if she attemptedto sit upright in a chair, her face was practically on her lap. She suffered from severe back pain. She weighed only 75 pounds. Her admitting diagnosis was depression. Soon after arriving on our unit, her oxygen saturation began to drop into the 80s. An echocardiogram and chest x-ray were ordered and she was started on continuous oxygen.When I first entered her room, I saw a cachectic woman lying in a fetal position on an air mattress. Her respiratory rate was 24-30 breaths per
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