Palliative Care Nursing: Caring for Suffering Patients

Palliative Care Nursing: Caring for Suffering Patients continues to explore the concept of suffering as it relates to nursing practice in an updated new edition. This text helps practicing nurses and students define and recognize various aspects of suffering across the lifespan and within various patient populations, while providing guidance in alleviating suffering. In addition, the authors discuss ways nurses that witness suffering can optimize their own coping skills and facilitate personal growth. The Second Edition aligns with the recently updated ELNEC and AACN competencies and features three new chapters discussing advance care planning, palliative care for those with serious illnesses, and strategies for having difficult conversations with patients and families.

How do we identify a patient who is suffering? How do we assess whether our patient (and/or their family) is coping with the event? What can we do to alleviate patient suffering? How can we convey the extent of the suffering to the other members of the healthcare team and advocate excellent palliative care for our patients? Palliative Care Nursing: Caring for Suffering Patients, Second Edition answers these questions and more, making it an indispensable resource for nursing students and nurses employed in a variety of health care settings.