At være – at være noget for nogen

The need for acknowledging the patient’s relatives as a resource is greater than ever. Today, most patients only get short-term treatment and care by professionals in hospital and live their lives at home with support and help from relatives. By introducing ethical perspectives of caring and incorporating some basic features of human existence, this essay seeks to provide a deeper understanding of what it means to be a relative. Being a relative reflects how we as humans are always affected by the situation surrounding us. Being a relative encompasses existential issues – ‘to be something to someone’. When a person enters the role of being a relative, life and personal experiences of life values may change – often in a meaningful and rewarding way. Relatives move physically and emotionally in and out of the life and context of the patient's disease. This may challenge the existential foundation and the guiding principles of relatives' previous actions. It becomes clear that we as humans are vulnerable and at the same time fundamentally dependent on our relationships with each other. Relationships change and are redefined as the conditions for and context of the relative’s life unexpectedly change.