Variations Among Nurses in Behavioral Intentions Toward the Dying

Abstract

The purposes of this study were to describe nurses' behavioral intentions toward the dying and to determine if they were related to selected characteristics of nurses caring for the dying. A questionnaire containing behavioral intention items and a characteristics profile was completed by 372 registered nurses working in a variety of settings in one midwestern state. Analyses of the data suggested that although nurses were very likely to provide general nursing care and to communicate openly with the dying, they were not likely to provide continuing care for bereaved family members. Major implications of the study were that the continuing care needs of bereaved family members are not being met by nurses in traditional health care settings, and that different groups of nurses have different approaches to care of the dying as well as different learning needs.