The family surrogates' psychological experience of making a do-not-resuscitate decision for older relatives: a qualitative study

Contemporary Nurse
Yi-Ping TsengYen-Fang Chou

Abstract

Many nursing home residents lack autonomous decision-making capacity and rely on family members to make do-not-resuscitate (DNR) decisions. Making DNR decisions can be difficult and complicated for surrogates. However, surrogates' psychological experience in making these decisions for older relatives is not well studied. To understand the surrogates' psychological experience of making DNR decisions for older relatives in a nursing home. The study subjects of this qualitative study were family surrogates of older residents in a nursing home of Taiwan. A self-constructed, semi-structured interview guided in-depth interviews, which were recorded. Content analysis was used to discover themes from verbatim record. Four themes were revealed: lack of psychological preparation, considering issues when making a decision, ambivalent emotional responses and impact of cultural factors. Fifteen subthemes were also found. Surrogates who must decide whether to make a DNR decision for older relatives experience great emotional conflict. Understanding surrogates' struggles may assist nursing and care staff in managing this difficult situation.

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Citations

Aug 18, 2020·Supportive Care in Cancer : Official Journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer·Panpan CuiChangying Chen
Jan 20, 2021·Research in Gerontological Nursing·Xiuli WangYing Zhang

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