Terminally ill patients' expectations of nurses.

This exploratory study was undertaken to discover what nursing behaviours terminally ill patients desire. To rank patients' attitudes and judgements a Q-sort consisting of 70 cards was used. The statements covered three categories: physical and psycho-emotional care of patients and psycho-emotional care of significant other/s. "I would like the nurse to help me remain at home for as long as possible" was the most favoured statement and the least favoured was: "I would like the nurse to talk to me about death and dying." The overall theme was that responsive rather than directive nursing behaviours were desired. Analysis identified five Factors from which a model of responsive nursing care was developed. Interpretation of the Factors indicated patients desired responsive nursing care that enabled them and their families to bring their own resources to the dying process, rather than having imposed upon them care which nurses deemed appropriate.