Essential nursing care: overdue for re-branding?

Delivery of quality essential ( basic ) nursing care is….er….an ESSENTIAL ( worthy of capitals methinks)  aspect of our profession.
So important, that we might just have to re-brand it as:  Non-Pharmacological Caregiving Activities (NPCAs).
Now that sounds like something that might get a little administrative and political respect!

Here is a qualitative study that looked at the NPCA care received by patients in their final days of life by palliative care staff across nine countries. Although looking specifically at palliative care, the article makes an interesting read relevant to all nurses ( when caring for the dying and the living ) and opens up a little exploration of what exactly goes on when we deliver this thing known as essential nursing care. Well worth a few quiet moments to read the whole thing ( download as a pdf) .

 

The researchers modified an anthropological approach to collect relevant information in participating European countries—Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK—and Argentina and New Zealand. Staff in palliative care settings generated a list of non-pharmacological caregiving activities after discussion about which interventions and activities they carried out with patients and families during the last days of life. This preliminary list of statements was added to if staff performed a new activity when in contact with patients or the patients’ family during the last days of life. The researchers then used computer-assisted qualitative data analysis to code the statements.

Using this methodology, the researchers analyzed 914 statements of caregiving activities from 16 different facilities in nine countries. The greatest number of activities described some type of caregiving for an individual carried out through contact with his or her body, such as attending to diverse bodily needs (such as cleaning and moisturizing) while maintaining comfort and dignity. Listening, talking with, and understanding (particularly between professionals and the family) was the next most frequent activity, followed by creating an esthetical, safe, and pleasing environment for the dying person and his or her family, and necessary “backstage” activities, such as organizing paperwork or care plans. Other common activities included observing and assessing, which were often described as being carried out simultaneously with other interventions; just being present (described as increasingly important close to death); performing rituals surrounding death and dying (usually directed to families); guiding and facilitating (encompassing support in a compassionate manner); and finally, giving oral and written information and advice (usually to families).

What Do These Findings Mean?

These findings show that providing for fundamental human needs close to death is complex and sophisticated but ultimately integrated into a common theme of caregiving. This study also identifies a number of areas needing further investigation, such as enhancing the sensory and general environment for the patient and family. Finally, this study suggests that developing a greater level of detail, such as improved terminology for end-of-life care, would enhance appreciation of the nuances and complexity present in non-pharmacological care provision during the last days of life, with potential benefit for clinical practice, teaching, and research.

:: Complexity in Non-Pharmacological Caregiving Activities at the End of Life: An International Qualitative Study ::