Caring Experience for a Good Death at Home by Family Members of Terminally Ill Cancer Patients
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Abstract
This qualitative research aimed to explore the caring experience for a good death at home, as perceived by family members of terminally ill cancer patients. A purposive sampling method was employed to select 15 family members of terminally ill cancer patients, who had at least one month of caring experience at home, lived with the patients, and were either related by blood or legal relationship. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with family members and analyzed using the framework outlined by Cohen, Kahn, and Steeves. Heidegger’s concept, which emphasizes that individuals derive meaning from phenomena based on their personal feelings and thoughts, was applied as the conceptual framework.
The findings demonstrated that the caring experience for a good death at home, as perceived by family members of terminally ill cancer patients, included the following: (1) caring for the patients to feel comfortable in their final stages of life and pass away peacefully, which involved maintaining daily routines, offering emotional support and encouragement to help the patients cope with the suffering caused by illness, providing compassionate and attentive care, alleviating pain and suffering, and facilitating a connection to religion to calm the mind and prepare for death; (2) family collaboration in caregiving, where family members collaborated in caring for the patients by collectively accepting the reality of death, making shared decisions about treatment, fulfilling the patients’ wishes, sharing caregiving responsibilities, and providing emotional support to each other; (3) caring with love and attachment, which was an opportunity to give back and the key component of caring for a good death.
The research findings can be used as foundational information to explain the caring experience for a good death at home, as perceived by family members of terminally ill cancer patients, which will deepen the understanding of the family’s role in such care. The findings can also contribute to the development of the Thai family service system for terminally ill cancer patients by coordinating with the healthcare team, including physicians, social workers, home care services and specialists in end-of-life care, to assess the needs of the patients and their families, provide information, as well as manage symptoms and other discomforts, along with offering psychological and spiritual care. Additionally, it can help promote the well-being of Thai families in caring for terminally ill cancer patients to ensure a good death at home.
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