The surrogate's experience during treatment decision-making.
OBJECTIVE
To explore the experiences, thoughts, and feelings of surrogates making decisions for older adults. To identify nursing practices perceived as helpful to surrogates.


METHODS
Eleven surrogate decision-makers.


METHODS
Qualitative. Semi-structured interviews/descriptive data used to enrich a larger study.


RESULTS
Four main themes were identified that described the surrogates' experiences: Contextualizing the decision Actualizing agency Reviewing and resolving Transcending


CONCLUSIONS
Three paradigm cases describe caregiving, protecting, and trusting response patterns of surrogates. Surrogates found decision-making an evolving and difficult process. Nurses can be more helpful to surrogates by giving them more opportunities to ask questions, solicit information, express emotions and obtain comfort and support.
Mennonite College of Nursing, Bloomington, IL, USA.
B R
BR
Jeffers
D000368:Aged; D017028:Caregivers / Q000523:psychology*; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D005851:Geriatric Nursing; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D011368:Professional-Family Relations; D019727:Proxy / Q000523:psychology*; D012944:Social Support