Nursing Philosophy of Visiting Nurses Who Support Families Caring for Their Dying Elders at Home

Abstract

The aim of this study was to describe a nursing philosophy based on visiting nurses' reflections on their practice experience supporting family caregivers who lived with their elder until the elders' death at home. The semi-structured interviews with eight visiting nurses provided data for analysis.The nurses' intentions were to[work with each family to support the elder until the end of the elder's long life]and to[help the family find its purpose for life after the elder's death]. The nurses believed three types of care were essential : [perceive family's unexpressed needs and desires in their daily lives] ; [provide guidance for the family so the family can continue to care for the elder and also meet its desires] ; [help the family to become more comfortable and confident living with a dying elder at home]. In providing this care, the nurses expressed the need to[build relationships with the family by being with the family as a person]and to[balance their affinity for a family with their awareness of their professional roles].This analysis suggests that nurses' intentional support is important to prevent families from suffering regret associated with the care they provided for their elders and keeping the balance between affinity for the family and one's professional role is a critical dynamic in the nurses' ability to provide nursing care. Maintaining this balance facilitated the family's autonomy.