Frontline Grief: The Workplace Support Needs of Community Palliative Care Nurses after the Death of a Patient
Published in Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing, the following article describes the impact of multiple deaths on nursing staff who work exclusively with palliative care patients in the community and identifies the types of workplace support required after the death of a patient. Requesting workplace support following the death of a patient was associated with higher levels of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization. A reported lack of training in grief responses was associated with depression, guilt, and physical distress. Peer debriefing was identified as the most appropriate workplace support; however, most respondents reported they lacked debriefing skills. Key recommendations for workplace support include training in debriefing, communication skills around death and dying, grief responses, and access to workplace-based complementary therapies.
Topics:
Organizational Factors, Organizational Strategies
Tags:
International, Leadership, Nurse