End‐of‐life care provision: experiences of intensive care nurses in Iraq

BACKGROUND: Nurses play a key role in providing care for the critically ill in the intensive care unit (ICU). The physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual intimate care given by Kurdish nurses allows them to develop a therapeutic relationship with terminally ill patients in the ICU. AIMS: This study sought to explore the meaning of caring for terminally ill patients from the perspective of Kurdish ICU nurses. DESIGN: Van Manen's (1990) hermeneutic phenomenological design was adopted. METHOD: The data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of 10 nurses working in ICUs. Interviews were transcribed and finally analysed according to Van Manen's method. RESULTS: Four major themes including emotional labour, death as a positive dimension, optimistic rather than futile care and working within constraints emerged. CONCLUSIONS: Kurdish nurses in their caring encounters with terminally ill patients experienced a range of feelings from emotional strain to being optimistic while working within limited resources in the ICU. Further research is needed to explore the experiences of nurses with other cultures of caring for terminally ill patients in ICUs. RELEVANCE TO PRACTICE: End-of-life care in ICU is emotionally challenging, therefore, nurses in this setting require psychological and spiritual support to ensure optimal care provision.