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Assessment of death notification to the families of deceased patients in Intensive Care Units of a specialized cardiovascular medical center
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Atefeh Mehrabi1   , Mohammad Ziae Totonchi Ghorbani2 , Mahmood Sheikh Fathollahi3 , Amirali Soheili4 , Shiva Khaleghparast *5 |
1- Cardiovascular Nursing Research Center, Rajaie Cardiovascular Institute, Tehran, Iran, atefeme@yahoo.com
2- Rajaie Cardiovascular Institute, Tehran, Iran, totounchi@rhc.ac.ir
3- Cardiovascular Nursing Research Center, Rajaie Cardiovascular Institute, Tehran, Iran, SHFato@rhc.ac.ir
4- Cardiovascular Nursing Research Center, Rajaie Cardiovascular Institute, Tehran, Iran, amiralisoheili1375@gmail.com
5- Cardiovascular Nursing Research Center, Rajaie Cardiovascular Institute, Tehran, Iran, sh_khaleghparast@yahoo.com , sh_khaleghparast@yahoo.com |
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Abstract: (7 Views) |
Abstract
Aim .The aim of this study was to assess the current status of death notification by healthcare staff to the families of deceased patients in the intensive care units of a specialized cardiovascular medical center in 2020.
Background. Delivering bad news, particularly death notification, is one of the most important and challenging responsibilities of healthcare providers in intensive care units (ICUs). This process has profound psychological and emotional impacts, not only on the patient, but also on their families. This study was conducted to evaluate the performance of the healthcare staff in delivering death news, identify existing strengths and weaknesses, and provide potential solutions for improving this process.
Method. This descriptive cross-sectional study used the SPIKES questionnaire to assess the communication skills of the healthcare staff in delivering death news. A total of 121 healthcare staff members from the intensive care units of the specialized cardiovascular medical center participated in the study, selected via census sampling. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 24, and a significance level of 0.05 was considered.
Findings. Of the 232 death notifications, 32.3 percent were delivered in person, and 67.7 percent were delivered by phone. The mean score obtained from the SPIKES questionnaire was 3.70±1.56, indicating an average performance in delivering death news. This result suggests that the performance of the healthcare staff in this regard is reasonably acceptable but still has room for improvement. The study also found that, in this center, the majority of death notifications were delivered by phone, which contradicts global standards that emphasize delivering death news in a private and in-person setting.
Conclusion. This study showed that healthcare staff in intensive care units need continuous training in communication skills and methods for delivering bad news to patients' families. Additionally, the results indicate the necessity of developing standardized protocols for death notification in healthcare settings. It is recommended that senior management pay special attention to this matter and develop precise protocols to improve the quality of this process and prevent the psychological harm caused by delivering death news to families. |
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| Keywords: Death notification, Bad news, Nurse, Physician, Intensive care unit, Healthcare staff |
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Full-Text [PDF 876 kb]
(6 Downloads)
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: Research |
Subject:
Clinical nurses knowledge resources
Received: 2025/04/27 | Accepted: 2024/03/20 | Published: 2024/03/20 | ePublished: 2024/03/20
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