Awareness of Imminent Death: Results From a Mixed Methods Study of Israeli Family Caregivers' Perceptions of Their Awareness and That of the Patients for Whom They Cared.
{"title":"Awareness of Imminent Death: Results From a Mixed Methods Study of Israeli Family Caregivers' Perceptions of Their Awareness and That of the Patients for Whom They Cared.","authors":"Jiska Cohen-Mansfield, Rinat Cohen, Shai Brill","doi":"10.1177/00302228221107236","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We studied levels of awareness of impending death in older patients and their family caregivers. Using a mixed methods approach, we interviewed 70 family caregivers in Israel. Of the caregivers, 64% reported having been aware of the impending death, 33% were unaware, and 3% uncertain. Caregivers reported their perception that 36% of patients were aware, 27% unaware, and for 37% they were uncertain about the patient's awareness. Mechanisms that increased caregivers' awareness were specific diagnosis, significant deterioration in health, preparation by a health professional, or patient preparations for death. This study clarifies processes which aid awareness, and the relationship between awareness and actual preparation for dying.</p>","PeriodicalId":47794,"journal":{"name":"Omega-Journal of Death and Dying","volume":"1 1","pages":"404-419"},"PeriodicalIF":1.5000,"publicationDate":"2024-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11440783/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Omega-Journal of Death and Dying","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1177/00302228221107236","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2022/6/13 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"PSYCHOLOGY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
We studied levels of awareness of impending death in older patients and their family caregivers. Using a mixed methods approach, we interviewed 70 family caregivers in Israel. Of the caregivers, 64% reported having been aware of the impending death, 33% were unaware, and 3% uncertain. Caregivers reported their perception that 36% of patients were aware, 27% unaware, and for 37% they were uncertain about the patient's awareness. Mechanisms that increased caregivers' awareness were specific diagnosis, significant deterioration in health, preparation by a health professional, or patient preparations for death. This study clarifies processes which aid awareness, and the relationship between awareness and actual preparation for dying.