Keywords

dementia, nursing home, palliative, qualitative research

 

Authors

  1. Hodgson, Nancy A. PhD, RN

Abstract

Palliative care teams in nursing homes are typically composed of individuals from different disciplines and sociocultural backgrounds. Yet little is known about the influence of different attitudes, beliefs, values, and expectations regarding end-of-life care on the successful development of a palliative care program. An ethnographic study was conducted during the development and implementation of a palliative care program in a 324-bed nursing home. This article describes and explores three themes that emerged from the data: (1) the experience of interdisciplinary team building, (2) the concept of personal commitment, and (3) the importance of allowing time for team members to experience the group process. These themes are illustrated using quilting as a metaphor.