Psychological Responses to Terminal Illness and Eventual Death in Koreans With Cancer

2006 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyung-Ah Kang ◽  
Jean R. Miller ◽  
Won-Hee Lee
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Terminal Cancer ◽  
Psychological Responses ◽  
Physical Pain ◽  
Course Of Illness ◽  
God's Will ◽  
Typical Response ◽  
Analytic Induction ◽  
Eventual Death

This qualitative study describes the psychological responses of Korean participants with terminal cancer (stages III–IV) from time of diagnosis to death. Eighteen participants, ages 48 to 73, were interviewed at various phases of dying. Using analytic induction, three categories (nonacceptance, resignation, submission), characteristic patterns of responses over the course of illness and typical responses within categories were generated. Nonaccepters denied the possibility of death while struggling to live; their typical response was resistance. Resigners displayed sorrow, thoughts about their destiny, and growing acceptance of their fate. Their typical response was nonresistance. Submitters were shocked initially, searched for God’s will, and prepared for death with hope. Their typical response was hopeful that God would care for them and their families. Participants’ ages, physical pain, burden to family, and beliefs played important roles in the patterns of responses.

Happiness at the end of life: A qualitative study

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Tan Seng Beng ◽  
Wong Ka Ghee ◽  
Ng Yun Hui ◽  
Ooi Chieh Yin ◽  
Khoo Wei Shen Kelvin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Social Connections ◽  
Targeted Interventions ◽  
Pain And Suffering ◽  
The University ◽  
Eudaimonic Happiness

Abstract Objective Dying is mostly seen as a dreadful event, never a happy experience. Yet, as palliative care physicians, we have seen so many patients who remained happy despite facing death. Hence, we conducted this qualitative study to explore happiness in palliative care patients at the University of Malaya Medical Centre. Method Twenty terminally ill patients were interviewed with semi-structured questions. The results were thematically analyzed. Results Eight themes were generated: the meaning of happiness, connections, mindset, pleasure, health, faith, wealth, and work. Our results showed that happiness is possible at the end of life. Happiness can coexist with pain and suffering. Social connections were the most important element of happiness at the end of life. Wealth and work were given the least emphasis. From the descriptions of our patients, we recognized a tendency for the degree of importance to shift from the hedonic happiness to eudaimonic happiness as patients experienced a terminal illness. Significance of results To increase the happiness of palliative care patients, it is crucial to assess the meaning of happiness for each patient and the degree of importance for each happiness domain to allow targeted interventions.

Experiences and Attitudes of Patients With Terminal Cancer and Their Family Caregivers Toward the Disclosure of Terminal Illness

2010 ◽  
Vol 28 (11) ◽  
pp. 1950-1957 ◽  
Author(s):  
Young Ho Yun ◽  
Yong Chol Kwon ◽  
Myung Kyung Lee ◽  
Woo Jin Lee ◽  
Kyung Hae Jung ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Emotional Distress ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Terminal Cancer ◽  
Related Quality ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Caregiver Group ◽  
Terminal Diagnosis

Purpose We investigated the experiences of cancer patients and their family caregivers who became aware that the cancer was terminal, how they became aware, and how they felt about disclosure of the information. Patients and Methods In this cohort study, we administered questionnaires to 619 consecutive patients determined by physicians to be terminally ill and to their family caregivers. Results A total of 481 patients and 381 family caregivers completed the questionnaire. A majority of patients (58.0%) and caregivers (83.4%) were aware of the patient's terminal status. Approximately 28% of patients and 23% of caregivers reported that they guessed it from the patient's worsening condition. The patient group was more likely than the caregiver group (78.6% v 69.6%) to prefer that patients be informed of their terminal status. Patients informed of their terminal diagnosis had a significantly better quality of life and fewer symptoms and had a lower rate of emotional distress than patients who guessed it from their worsening condition. Younger patients and patients who paid the treatment costs themselves were significantly more likely to want to be told when their illness was terminal. If the patient paid the treatment cost and was employed at the time of the cancer diagnosis, the family caregivers were more likely to prefer disclosure of terminal illness. Conclusion Most patients with terminal cancer and their family caregivers preferred disclosure, and patients who knew of their terminal diagnosis had a lower rate of emotional distress and a higher health-related quality of life.

scholarly journals A Q-Methodological Study of the Kubler-Ross Stage Theory

1980 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 291-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne M. Metzger
Keyword(s):  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Q Methodology ◽  
Q Factor ◽  
Methodological Study ◽  
Course Of Illness ◽  
Research Procedure ◽  
Seriously Ill Patients ◽  
Patient’S Perception ◽  
Q Sort ◽  
Seriously Ill

This study investigated the correspondence between the stage changes hypothesized by the Kubler-Ross theory and the perception of the course of illness by seriously ill patients and their spouse. A thirty-six item structured Q-sort was administered on two occasions to two couples, in each the wife had a potentially terminal medical diagnosis. Participants described the patient's perception of the illness at the present time and as it had been at four other times since the diagnosis. The Q-sorts of each couple were intercorrelated and submitted to Q-factor analysis. The results supported the use of Q-methodology as a research procedure for investigations of terminal illness. Factors which emerged did not reveal the Kubler-Ross structure in the Q-sort nor was there evidence of stages. Implications for the validity of the Kubler-Ross theory were discussed.

Terminal Cancer and Suicide: The Health Care Professional's Dilemma

1984 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 241-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie C. Hansen ◽  
Charles A. MC Aleer
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Behavioral Response ◽  
Death Anxiety ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Anxiety Scale ◽  
Terminal Cancer ◽  
Terminal Cancer Patients ◽  
And Behavior

This study was designed to test the hypothesis that health care professionals would differ in their evaluations of a patient contemplating suicide, in their acceptance of suicide for the patient, and in their projected behavioral response to the patient, as a function of their belief that the patient has cancer, a terminal illness, or terminal cancer, and as a function of the degree of their death anxiety. Health care professionals ( N = 138) across a variety of disciplines completed Templer's Death Anxiety Scale, read one of four randomly distributed written introductions, then viewed taped segments of counseling sessions with a woman who was contemplating suicide. Results demonstrated that health care professionals' evaluations, acceptance, and behavior in the case of a patient contemplating suicide are affected by their belief that the patient has cancer and/or is dying, and by the degree of death anxiety experienced by the practitioner. The importance of awareness regarding personal feelings about suicide among terminal cancer patients is discussed.

The Influence of Previous Personality on Reactions to Having Terminal Cancer

1975 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Hinton
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Emotional Disturbance ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Emotional State ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Terminal Cancer ◽  
Terminally Ill Cancer Patients ◽  
Senior Nurse ◽  
State Of Mind

This study of 60 married, terminally-ill cancer patients, 22 males and 38 females inquired into associations between the descriptions of each patient's personality and state of mind before and during his/her last illness. Previous information concerning character, marriage, and religious traits was obtained through interviews with the patient's spouse. Information about the patient's feelings and reactions during the illness came from interviews with the patient, spouse, and senior nurse. The results deviate from some pre-conceived beliefs. For instance, less stable people did not show appreciably more emotional disturbance during their terminal illness. While the techniques of group investigations have limitations in their application to any particular individual, they do uncover information which is valuable in understanding the emotional state of the terminally ill.

An interpretative phenomenological analysis exploring the lived experience of individuals dying from terminal cancer in Ireland

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 641-651 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kara McTiernan ◽  
Michael O'Connell
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experience ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis ◽  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Social Withdrawal ◽  
Phenomenological Analysis ◽  
Terminal Cancer ◽  
Unfinished Business ◽  
The Public ◽  
Personal Impact

AbstractObjective:The experience of living with dying has attracted limited research. We utilized interpretive phenomenological analysis to explore the lived experience of individuals with terminal cancer receiving palliative care in Ireland.Method:Participants were purposely selected from public interviews that had been conducted between 2006 and 2011. The study included the accounts of eight participants (N = 8; six females and two males) with a diagnosis of terminal cancer. Participant ages ranged from 36 to 68 years.Results:Three master themes emerged from the analysis: the personal impact of diagnosis, the struggle in adjusting to change, and dying in context. The results revealed that participants were still living while simultaneously dying. Interestingly, participants did not ascribe new meaning to their lives. The terminal illness was understood within the framework of the life that had existed before diagnosis. They strove to maintain their normal routines and continued to undertake meaningful activities. Management of unfinished business and creation of a legacy were salient tasks. Social withdrawal was not present; rather, participants engaged in emotional labor to sustain valued roles. However, we found that within the public domain there is a paucity of education and discourse supporting individuals at the end of life. The hospice was noted as an important external resource. Each participant experienced a unique dying process that reflected their context.Significance of Results:Healthcare professionals need to recognize the subjectivity of the dying process. Dying individuals require support and options to maintain their personhood.

scholarly journals Realizacja powołania zakonnego Maurycego Ludwika Kubraka OFMCap (1937-1987)

2020 ◽  
Vol 67 (3) ◽  
pp. 105-119
Author(s):  
Andrzej Derdziuk
Keyword(s):  
Terminal Illness ◽  
Pastoral Work ◽  
Hospital Chaplain ◽  
God's Will ◽  
Parish Priest ◽  
The Cross ◽  
Religion Teacher

The figure of Capuchin Maurycy Ludwik Kubrak (1937-1987) was remembered as a charismatic priest who influenced the faithful with his humbleness, simplicity and the spirit of piety and poverty. While working in Biała Podlaska and Lublin as a religion teacher, he was called a catechist with a magnet. In his service as a hospital chaplain in Lublin and in pastoral work for the nuns in Nowe Miasto, he was faithful to his duties and sacrificial availability which spared no effort. As a parish priest in Rywałd Królewski, he spread the Marian cult and developed pastoral work in the sanctuary. His patience and love for the cross was revealed during his terminal illness, which he experienced with exceptional submission to God's will. He died in the opinion of holiness.

scholarly journals Understanding Barriers to the Access to Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services: A Qualitative Study with Mothers or Female Caregivers of Children with a Disability in Indonesia

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (21) ◽  
pp. 11546
Author(s):  
Gregorius Abanit Asa ◽  
Nelsensius Klau Fauk ◽  
Lillian Mwanri ◽  
Paul Russell Ward
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Healthcare Professionals ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Access To Healthcare ◽  
Rehabilitation Services ◽  
Snowball Sampling ◽  
God's Will ◽  
Faith Based ◽  
Rehabilitation Centers

Accessibility to healthcare and rehabilitation services for children with a disability (CWD) is essential to improving their health and wellbeing. However, access to the services, especially in many settings in developing countries with scarcity of resources, is still limited. As part of a qualitative study exploring impacts of caring for CWD on mothers or female caregivers and their coping strategies, this paper describes barriers for access to healthcare and rehabilitation services for CWD in Belu district, Indonesia. One-on-one, in-depth interviews were conducted with 22 mothers or female caregivers of CWD. Participants were recruited using a combination of purposive and snowball sampling techniques. These were supplemented with interviews with two staff of disability rehabilitation centers in Belu to understand any additional barriers. Data analysis was guided by a qualitative data analysis framework. Our analysis identified that lack of affordability of healthcare services (high costs and low financial capacity of mothers) was the key barrier for access to healthcare and rehabilitation services CWD. Religious or faith-based factors, such as being a non-Catholic (Belu is predominantly Catholic), converting from Catholic to other religions, and the belief in children’s disability condition as “God’s will”, were also influencing factors for lack of access to the services. Shortage of staff, distrust in the therapy skills of staff at rehabilitation centers, and unavailability of appropriately trained healthcare professionals were structural or system-related barriers. The findings indicate the need for government-owned and run disability rehabilitation centers (not faith-based), the provision of fully subsidised health insurance to provide free services, and the provision of qualified therapists and healthcare professionals (to build trust) in Belu and other similar settings in Indonesia.

Beyond striae cutis: A case report on how physical skin complaints unveiled end-of-life total experience

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-3
Author(s):  
Miguel Julião ◽  
Paula Calçada ◽  
Vasco Coelho Macias ◽  
Pedro Mendes-Bastos
Keyword(s):  
Case Report ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
Multidisciplinary Team ◽  
Life Experience ◽  
Terminally Ill ◽  
Multidisciplinary Teams ◽  
Terminal Cancer ◽  
Physical Pain ◽  
Holistic Approaches ◽  
Physical Distress

Abstract Background End-of-life is a unique and multidimensional experience, and physical complaints can reveal other areas of distress. Method A case report of a woman with terminal cancer with painful and deforming skin striae cared by a multidisciplinary team. Results After initially treating her physical pain, other end-of-life psychosocial, spiritual, and existential aspects could be addressed. Significance of results Physical distress can unveil other essential areas of end-of-life experience when multidisciplinary teams caring for the terminally ill patients use holistic approaches.

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