‘Ambivalence’ at the end of life: How to understand patients’ wishes ethically
Health-care professionals in end-of-life care are frequently confronted with patients who seem to be ‘ambivalent’ about treatment decisions, especially if they express a wish to die. This article investigates this phenomenon by analysing two case stories based on narrative interviews with two patien...
| Autori: | ; ; ; |
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| Tipo di documento: | Elettronico Articolo |
| Lingua: | Inglese |
| Verificare la disponibilità: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Caricamento...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Pubblicazione: |
Sage
2012
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| In: |
Nursing ethics
Anno: 2012, Volume: 19, Fascicolo: 5, Pagine: 629-641 |
| Altre parole chiave: | B
end of life
B Ambivalence B Narratives B wish to die B patients’ experience B Identity |
| Accesso online: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Riepilogo: | Health-care professionals in end-of-life care are frequently confronted with patients who seem to be ‘ambivalent’ about treatment decisions, especially if they express a wish to die. This article investigates this phenomenon by analysing two case stories based on narrative interviews with two patients and their caregivers. First, we argue that a respectful approach to patients requires acknowledging that coexistence of opposing wishes can be part of authentic, multi-layered experiences and moral understandings at the end of life. Second, caregivers need to understand when contradictory statements point to tensions in a patient’s moral experience that require support. Third, caregivers should be careful not to negatively label or even pathologize seemingly contradictory patient statements. |
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| ISSN: | 1477-0989 |
| Comprende: | Enthalten in: Nursing ethics
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1177/0969733011436206 |