Caring When Curing is Not an Option.

These narratives provide intimate descriptions of the challenges, frustrations, and sometimes, the satisfaction of caring for a family member with dementia. They are presented by twelve individuals who want us to understand and possibly learn from their lived experiences. At the beginning of their journey, most describe a slow awareness that "something is seriously wrong.

[Cognition in children with social anxiety disorder experiencing stress].

Cognition in children with social anxiety disorder experiencing stress Empirical data on cognitions of children with social anxiety disorder (SAD) are inconclusive. The present study examines the significance of cognition in children with SAD. Thirty children suffering from SAD and 30 control children free of diagnosis (HC) aged between 9 and 15 years took part in an experiment.

'I can't help you with that': when terminally ill patients wish to hasten their dying,nurses can--and should--help.

When terminally ill patients wish to hasten their dying, nurses can-and should-help.

Can we know what Terri Schiavo would have wanted?

What would Terri Schiavo have wanted? That remains an unanswered question for many who followed the media frenzy that attended the extraordinary court and legislative battles that preceded her death 13 days after her feeding tube was removed for the last time. What would she have directed her physicians to do if she had "miraculously" regained capacity and awareness of the consequences of her cardiac arrest that left her in a persistent vegetative state? Who would she have wanted to make that decision for her if she were unable to do so? How are we to understand the meaning of statements that she purportedly made about life-sustaining treatments approximately 20 years ago, and how can we apply them to the current situation? This article reflects on those questions from the perspective of two small exploratory studies. These studies considered the meanings and interpretation of statements by terminally ill patients concerning desire for hastened death and the relevance of previously made statements to their current clinical situation.

Responding to persistent requests for assistance in dying: a phenomenological inquiry.

Little is known about how American nurses understand and respond to requests made by decisionally capable patients for assistance in dying. This article is based on a broader qualitative study first reported elsewhere (Schwarz, 2003). The study used phenomenological interpretation and analysis of stories told by 10 nurses who worked in home hospice, critical care, and HIV/AIDS care settings.

Understanding and responding to patients' requests for assistance in dying.

Purpose: To explore how nurses experience and respond to patients' requests for assistance in dying (AID).

Design And Methods: A phenomenological study of 10 self-selected nurses.

Findings: Four major themes: Being Open to Hear and Hearing; Interpreting and Responding to the Meaning; Responding to Persistent Requests for AID, and Reflections.