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“I’m not sure I’d say much at all, not at first. I would just try to listen.”
This in response to the question of how a hospice nurse should respond if patients or family members make demands that seem unreasonable, unwise, or downright impossible.
“Patients and family members in end-of-life situations need to be heard. Sometimes they just need to have their anger and frustrations acknowledged. Sometimes they have an important request. Active listening, including empathetic silence, goes a long way.”
Laura Ptucha-Skoog should know; she has been an R.N. for decades and a nurse at Hospice of the Foothills for the last nine years. She loves her job, including the challenge of facilitating communication. Her ability to talk frankly with terminally ill hospital patients and families drew her to a career in hospice.
“Often,” Laura explains, “the human elements are as challenging as the medical ones. Things like asking the right questions and listening to responses; making sure your patient and their caregivers understand what you are doing and why; verifying that everyone understands where you are in the process; listening to their responses with patience and empathy.”
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Posted initially on Yuba.net by Timothy May
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