P01-117 - “Death Anxiety” in Special and General Ward's Nurses

Abstract

Background & aim

The thought of death can be frightening and cause anxiety. Death anxiety is a mankind experience, some profession such nursing face with it routinely and communication with dying patients is major problem of nurses that insufficient preparation to deal constructively with the process of dying and death effect on nurses productivity and patients outcomes. Aim of this preliminary study was compare of death anxiety in special and general ward's nurses.

Material & methods

This study was cross-sectional and 387 nurses (155 from general & 232 from special wards) in census method were recruited from Shariati Hospital of TUMS. Demographic information and Death anxiety (Templer's Death Anxiety Scale) were measured by self-report questionnaire then information analyzed by SPSS.

Results

Results show significant difference between mean score of Death anxiety in special (8/262/1) and general (8/302/4) ward's nurses and was correlated with some variables such as marriage (p=0/046), organizational situation (p=0/001) and the ward which nurses now worked (p=0/02). But has not significantly correlated with age, sex, shift, care of end stage patients, partnership in CPR and etc.

Conclusion

Death anxiety effect physical and emotional aspects of nurse's life and so effect process of caring present by them. Results show death anxiety was higher in special ward nurses and they faced more than general ward nurses to dying and death so they need special attention to death anxiety and investigation causes of it, development of institutional support to enable nurses to provide good quality care for patients.