Table 1.
General assessment of nurses’ perceptions of potential obstacles to providing the end of life care
| No. | Statement | Mean | Standard deviation | 95% CI | N (%)a |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | The nurse’s opinion on immediate patient care is not welcome, valued or discussed | 2.01 | 0.96 | 1.89–2.13 | 137 (57.3) |
| 2. | Family has no access to psychological help after being informed about the patient’s diagnosis | 1.88 | 0.93 | 1.76–2.00 | 219 (91.6) |
| 3. | The lack of nursing knowledge on how to treat the patient’s grieving family | 1.76 | 0.90 | 1.64–1.87 | 131 (54.8) |
| 4. | Physicians are evasive and avoid conversation with the patient and/or family members | 1.72 | 0.89 | 1.60–1.83 | 141(58.9) |
| 5. | Physicians are too optimistic about the patient’s survival prospects during conversations with the patient’s family members | 1.65 | 0.81 | 1.55–1.75 | 134 (56.0) |
| 6. | The patient’s family does not accept information provided by a physician about the patient’s poor prognosis | 1.54 | 0.79 | 1.44–1.64 | 155 (64.8) |
| 7. | Family members or friends regularly call for a nurse in order to find out about the patient’s condition instead of addressing an informed family member | 1.54 | 0.78 | 1.44–1.63 | 153 (64.0) |
| 8. | The patient’s family members disagree on what kind of care is the most adequate | 1.53 | 0.75 | 1.44–1.63 | 149 62.3 |
| 9. | Usually there is no time for conversations with patients about their wishes concerning the end of life decisions | 1.28 | 0.66 | 1.19–1.36 | 201 (84.0) |
| 10. | The patient’s relatives having inadequate understanding of the situation interfere with the nurses’ duties | 1.21 | 0.60 | 1.14–1.29 | 210 (87.8) |
| 11. | Nurses have to deal with angry patient’s family members | 1.20 | 0.57 | 1.12–1.27 | 219 91.6 |
aPositive perceptions (Strongly agree/Agree)