title: The Effect of Providing Life Support on Nurses' Decision Making Regarding Life Support for Themselves and Family Members in Japan.
abstract: Decision making in terminal illness has recently received increased attention. In Japan, patients and their families typically make decisions without understanding either the severity of illness or the efficacy of life-supporting treatments at the end of life. Japanese culture traditionally directs the family to make decisions for the patient. This descriptive study examined the influence of the experiences of 391 Japanese nurses caring for dying patients and family members and how that experience changed their decision making for themselves and their family members. The results were mixed but generally supported the idea that the more experience nurses have in caring for the dying, the less likely they would choose to institute lifesupport measures for themselves and family members. The results have implications for discussions on end-of-life care.
authors.affiliation: Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Nihon University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan shaku-gi@umin.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Fumio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shaku
authors.affiliation: Primary Care and Medical Education, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan.
authors.forename: Madoka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tsutsumi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001293:Attitude to Death / Q000208:ethnology; D003657:Decision Making; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008020:Life Support Care / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D009726:Nurses / Q000523:psychology*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: cultural difference; decision making; family death; life-support treatment; nurse; patient death; terminal care