The Attitude of Intensive Care and Oncology Nurses Regarding the Care of the Dying Individual

Abstract

Objective: This cross-sectional study was designed to determine the attitudes of intensive care and oncology nurses towards the care of the dying individual and their coping methods. Materials and Methods: The sample of the study consisted of 96 nurses working in intensive care units and oncology clinics in a university hospital between January and February 2020. Data were collected using the Characteristics of the Nurse and The Frommelt Attitude Toward Care of the Dying (FATCOD) scale. Results: 27.2% of the nurses included in the study were working in Oncology clinics, while 72.9% of them were working in Intensive Care Units, and 45.8% of them were working in the clinic they had been in for 1-5 years. 43.8% of the nurses stated that they regarded the death event as natural, 60.4% felt grief and sadness, and 45.8% felt despair. The total FATCOD mean score of the nurses was determined to be 80.04 ± 8.80. It was found that the attitudes of nurses who did not think that death is natural, towards the care of the dying individual were significantly higher (p