Dying and death within the culture of long-term care facilities in Canada
The following is an excerpt from an article published in the International Journal of Older People Nursing on 19 July 2016; authors Beryl Cable-Williams RN, PhD and Donna M. Wilson RN, PhD.
Dying and death within the culture of long-term care facilities in Canada
Because strongly held long-term care cultural beliefs underlie care, more timely palliative care for long-term care residents is likely to require the development of an understanding that living and dying are not dichotomous, but rather unfold together from admission until death. Enhanced staff-to-resident ratios and staff training on palliative care will also be necessary to permit long-term care facility staff to focus beyond the currently expected day-to-day care of living residents to provide high quality end of life care throughout the often-protracted decline to death for residents of long-term care facilities.
What does this research add to existing knowledge in gerontology?
The prime belief that LTC facilities are for living contributes to the likelihood that end-of-life care is initiated when only a few hours or days remain until death, with little or no palliative care provided at earlier stages in the trajectory of decline.
What are the implications of this new knowledge for nursing care with older people?
Very old residents of LTC facilities require an integration of living and dying care.
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