2023 Volume 73 Issue 2 Pages 135-142
Background & Aims: It is necessary to educate nurses to reduce the difficulty of communicating with patients at the terminal phase of cancer and to talk openly with patients. This study aimed to clarify (1) current status of education regarding communication, (2) the difficulties nurses face in communicating with terminally ill cancer patients, and (3) responses of certified nurse specialist in cancer nursing (CNSCN) when nurses consult about difficulties.
Methods: A questionnaire survey and a semi-structured interview were conducted for CNSCNs. In the analysis, communication education was organized using Excel, and nurses’ difficulties and CNSCNs’ responses were analyzed qualitatively and inductively.
Results: Consent and responses to the questionnaire were obtained from 12 out of 22 CNSCNs. All hospitals had some form of communication education. The following three categories were established based on the nurses’ difficulties: “confusion that they are not able to respond to the patients’ feelings despite having been able to listen to,” and “the psychology of nurses who cannot get into the feelings of patients,” etc.
Conclusions: It is necessary to provide communication education that considers the attitude of nurses seeking correct answers out of their unwillingness to hurt themselves and the fear of communication out of their unwillingness to hurt patients.
