Families speak about inpatient end-of-life care.
Death is an emotional event that leaves lasting memories for the bereaved. This article describes the qualitative analysis of a mailed family survey addressing experiences with community hospital inpatient end-of-life care. Family members identified and appreciated symptom management and caring behaviors such as compassion and communication; they also noted the absence of these caring behaviors. Effective application of these behaviors to the dying experience should improve family satisfaction with end-of-life care.
London
Marla R
MR
Center for Outcomes Research and Education, Providence Health System, Portland, OR 97225, USA. marla.london@providence.org
Lundstedt
Janyce
J
D001293:Attitude to Death; D001601:Bereavement; D003142:Communication; D004645:Empathy; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006764:Hospitals, Community / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D009922:Oregon; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011368:Professional-Family Relations; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000523:psychology / Q000592:standards*