| 1. |
|
|
| 2. |
- Andreassen Devik, Siri, et al.
(författare)
-
Meanings of being old, living on one's own and suffering from incurable cancer in rural Norway
- 2013
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - : Elsevier BV. - 1462-3889 .- 1532-2122. ; 17:6, s. 781-787
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore and understand the lived experience of older people living alone and suffering from incurable cancer in rural Norway. Methods and sample: Narrative interviews were conducted with five older people with incurable cancer (three women and two men, aged 71-79), receiving outpatient and life-prolonging chemotherapy and living alone in their homes in rural areas. A phenomenological hermeneutical approach was used to interpret the meaning of the lived experience. Key results: Four main themes were found: enduring by keeping hope alive, becoming aware that you are on your own, living up to expectations of being a good patient and being at risk of losing one's identity and value. Enduring this situation means struggling with terminal illness and facing death in a brave manner, and replacing former ways of living. The process of providing treatment may threaten dignity and cause additional distress. Conclusions: These results show a complex and comprehensive situation where physical symptoms and emotions are interwoven. Further the results describe how the ways of suffering caused by the manner in which care is delivered, suffering related to the cancer disease and existential suffering, may increase each other's impact. The social and rural context calls for special attention as the patients may lack recourses to gain sufficient care. Their comfort depends to a large extent on the health professionals' sensitivity. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.
|
|
| 3. |
- Browall, Maria, et al.
(författare)
-
Existential encounters: Nurses' descriptions of critical incidents in end-of-life cancer care
- 2014
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - : Elsevier BV. - 1462-3889 .- 1532-2122. ; 18:6, s. 636-644
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Nurses working with cancer patients in end of life care need to be prepared to encounter patients' psychosocial and spiritual distress. Aim: The aim of this study was to describe nurses' experiences of existential situations when caring for patients severely affected by cancer. Methods and sample: Nurses (registered and enrolled) from three urban in-patient hospices, an oncology clinic and a surgery clinic and a palliative homecare team were, prior to the start of a training program, invited to write down their experiences of a critical incident (CI), in which existential issues were featured. Results: Eighty-eight CIs were written by 83 nurses. The CIs were analyzed with qualitative content analysis. Two main themes were found: Encounters with existential pain experiences, which concerned facing death and facing losses; and Encountering experiences of hope, which concerned balancing honesty, and desire to live. Conclusions: This study points out that health care professionals need to be aware of patients' feelings of abandonment in exposed situations such as patients' feelings of existential loneliness. That there are some patients that express a desire to die and this makes the nurses feel uncomfortable and difficult to confront these occurrences and its therefore important to listen to patients' stories, regardless of care organization, in order to gain access to patients' inner existential needs.
|
|
| 4. |
- Browall, Maria, et al.
(författare)
-
Health-related quality of life during adjuvant treatment for breast cancer among postmenopausal women
- 2008
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - : Elsevier. - 1462-3889 .- 1532-2122. ; 12:3, s. 180-189
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The purpose of the present study was twofold: first, to describe changes of Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) during the adjuvant treatment among postmenopausal women with breast cancer; second, in the same population to identify the best predictors of Overall Quality of Life (QoL) after treatment, from perceived functioning, symptoms, emotional distress and clinical/demographic variables measured at baseline. The study group was 150 women (>= 55 years of age) scheduled for adjuvant chemotherapy (CT, n=75) or radiotherapy (RT, n=75). They were examined before (baseline), during and after completing the treatment. Data about QoL, perceived functioning, symptoms and emotional distress were collected with the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC)-QLQ-C30, BR23 and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) questionnaires. The general finding was that the adjuvant treatments were associated with decrease in overall QoL, physical and role functioning, anxiety and body image, as well as with increase in fatigue, dyspnoea, pain, nausea/vomiting, constipation and systemic therapy side effects measured over time. For women receiving CT, better emotional functioning and less pain at baseline predicted better overall QoL at the end of the treatment. For women receiving RT, better physical and emotional functioning, less breast symptoms and lower tumour stage at baseline predicted better overall QoL at the end of the treatment.
|
|
| 5. |
- Engström, J., et al.
(författare)
-
Palliative sedation at end of life - A systematic literature review
- 2007
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - : Elsevier BV. - 1462-3889 .- 1532-2122. ; 11:1, s. 26-35
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Palliative sedation at the end of life to handle unmanageable symptoms has been much debated. A systematic literature review in three phases including a content analysis of 15 articles published between the years 1990 and 2005 has been conducted. The aim was to describe the phenomenon of 'palliative sedation at the end of life' from a nursing perspective. The results can be summarised in three themes: 'Important factors leading to the patient receiving sedation at the end of life', 'Attitudes to palliative sedation at the end of life' and 'Nurses' experience of palliative sedation at the end of a patient's life'. Together, the themes show that palliative sedation is a phenomenon that could be described as sedation given to fewer than 40% of dying patients during their Last 4 days of life. It is usually given because of the patient's pain, agitation and/or dyspnoea. Professionals usually have positive attitudes towards it and their view differs from that of the public's view regarding it as continuously deep sedation, whereas the public regards it as being close to euthanasia. Studies focusing on nursing care during palliative sedation are hard to find and this underlines the importance of further research in this area to elucidate the nurses' role during palliative sedation.
|
|
| 6. |
- Ervik, B., et al.
(författare)
-
Dealing with a troublesome body : A qualitative interview study of men’s experiences living with prostate cancer treated with endocrine therapy
- 2012
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - : Elsevier BV. - 1462-3889 .- 1532-2122. ; 16:2, s. 103-108
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: Endocrine therapy for prostate cancer causes substantial side effects, and previous studies have focused on the impacts on sexuality and masculinity. Little is known about how men experience bodily alterations in everyday life through the course of the prostate cancer and treatment. The aim of this study was to show how men with prostate cancer experience bodily changes and how these alterations influence daily life. Method: The study was conducted via qualitative interviews with a phenomenological hermeneutic approach. We interviewed ten men (aged 58-83) with prostate cancer who received endocrine therapy as the primary treatment method. Results: The results showed that five themes were important for the men’s experiences of their bodily alterations throughout the course of the illness: "something is ’wrong’", "when the body becomes troublesome", "to be well or to be ill", "dealing with the alterations" and "to talk about cancer and the intimate details" Initially, the shock of receiving a cancer diagnosis and the physical changes in their bodies were at the forefront of many patients’ minds. Eventually, the impact of the side effects became more evident, which caused problems in everyday life. Yet, the men were able to reflect on the impact of treatment on their everyday lives. Conclusion: This study showed that hormone treatment has a significant influence, both directly and indirectly, on the bodies of prostate cancer patients. The experiences of men with prostate cancer may lead to feelings of loss of identity on an existential level. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd.
|
|
| 7. |
- Henoch, Ingela, 1956, et al.
(författare)
-
Dyspnea experience in patients with lung cancer in palliative care
- 2008
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - : Elsevier BV. - 1462-3889 .- 1532-2122. ; 12:2, s. 86-96
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this study was to describe the dyspnea experience and examine its relation to other symptoms, personal and health-related factors and its predictors in patients with lung cancer. The subjects were 105 patients diagnosed with lung cancer, approached when active anti-tumour treatment was closed. The patients completed a battery of questionnaires about several aspects of dyspnea experience, intensity of other symptoms and coping capacity. Medical data including performance status were obtained from medical records. Above 50% of the patients perceived dyspnea. Coping capacity, performance status and other symptoms correlated with different aspects of dyspnea experience. Dyspnea dimensions and activity-related dyspnea correlated with anxiety, depression, fatigue and cough as well as negatively to coping capacity. Performance status correlated with dyspnea intensity and activity-related dyspnea. Lower coping capacity predicted dyspnea; additional predictors were higher levels of anxiety and fatigue. Dyspnea in this group of patients was a complex experience, including physical and psychological aspects and should preferably be assessed in a comprehensive way. A nursing intervention to decrease dyspnea experience and anxiety could use knowledge from this study about the importance of coping capacity to better help patients with lung cancer to cope in their palliative phase of the disease
|
|
| 8. |
- Näppä, Ulla, 1960-, et al.
(författare)
-
Challenging situations when administering palliative chemotherapy : a nursing perspective
- 2014
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - : Elsevier. - 1462-3889 .- 1532-2122. ; 18:6, s. 591-597
-
Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Palliative chemotherapy treatments (PCT) are becoming more common for patients with incurable cancer; a basic challenge is to optimize tumour response while minimizing side-effects and harm. As registered nurses most often administer PCT, they are most likely to be confronted with difficult situations during PCT administration. This study explores challenging situations experienced by nurses when administering PCT to patients with incurable cancer.Methods: Registered nurses experienced in administering PCT were asked in interviews to recall PCT situations they found challenging. Inspired by the narrative tradition, stories were elicited and analysed using a structural and thematic narrative analysis.Results: A total of twenty-eight stories were narrated by seventeen nurses. Twenty of these were dilemmas that could be sorted into three storylines containing one to three dilemmatic situations each. The six dilemmatic situations broadly related to three interwoven areas: the uncertainty of the outcome when giving potent drugs to vulnerable patients; the difficulty of resisting giving PCT to patients who want it; and insufficient communication between nurses and physician.Conclusion: Nurses who administer PCT are engaged in a complex task that can give rise to a number of dilemmatic situations. The findings may be interpreted as meaning that at least some situations might be preventable if the knowledge and insight of all team members – nurses, physicians, patients, and relatives – are jointly communicated and taken into account when deciding whether or not to give PCT. Forming palliative care teams early in the PCT trajectory, could be beneficial for staff and patients.
|
|
| 9. |
- Näppä, Ulla, et al.
(författare)
-
Routine assessment of performance status during palliative chemotherapy when approaching end-of-life
- 2016
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - : Elsevier BV. - 1462-3889 .- 1532-2122. ; 21, s. 266-271
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: Palliative chemotherapy treatment (PCT) offered late in the cancer disease trajectory may be problematic. It is not easy to accurately calculate whether the potential benefits will outweigh the side effects. This study investigates whether routine use of the Performance Status in Palliative Chemotherapy questionnaire (PSPC) affects the proportions of patients receiving PCT during the last month of life, care utilization, and documentation routines. A secondary aim was to gather registered nurses' experiences of the PSPC in routine use.Methods: Eighty incurable patients with cancer who had used the PSPC before PCT were compared to 160 matched controls, using non-parametric tests. Nurses' reflections on the PSPC were collected and reviewed.Results: No significant differences were found between users and non-users of the PSPC in terms of proportions receiving PCT during the last month of life. Higher proportions of patients older than 74 years received PCT than in previous studies (40% versus 17%). Nurses considered the questionnaires to be a valuable complement to verbal information when trying to acquire an accurate picture of patients' performance status.Conclusion: At this point in the development of the PSPC we did not find any significant decreases in the proportion of patients receiving PCT during the last month in life. However, as the nurses valued the PSPC, it can be used as a complementary tool in assessment of performance status until further research is conducted.
|
|
| 10. |
- Udo, Camilla, et al.
(författare)
-
Existential issues among health care staff in surgical cancer care - Discussions in supervision sessions.
- 2011
-
Ingår i: European Journal of Oncology Nursing. - Edinburgh : Elsevier BV. - 1532-2122 .- 1462-3889. ; 15:5, s. 447-453
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- PURPOSE: The aim was, through analysis of dialogues in supervision sessions, to explore if health care staff in surgical care discussed existential issues when caring for cancer patients. METHOD: A secondary analysis of the content of twelve tape-recorded supervision sessions (18h) was conducted. The study analysed the dialogue content in supervision sessions involving a group of eight participants who worked at a surgical clinic at a county hospital in central Sweden. The sessions were held every third week during the course of one year. RESULTS: The analysis showed that surgical health care staff contemplates existential issues. The staff discussed their existential dilemmas, which hindered them from meeting and dealing with patients' existential questions. This is illustrated in the themes: "feelings of powerlessness", "identifying with patients", and "getting close or keeping one's distance". The staff also discussed the fact that patients expressed existential distress, which is illustrated in the themes: "feelings of despair" and "feelings of isolation". CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that there are existential issues at a surgical clinic which health care staff need to acknowledge. The staff find themselves exposed to existential dilemmas when caring for cancer patients. They are conscious of patients' existential issues, but lack strategies for dealing with this. This study highlights a need to provide support to staff for developing an existential approach, which will boost their confidence in their encounters with patients.
|
|
