Comforting Behaviors Identified by Terminally Ill Hospitalized Adults
Abstract
Twenty terminally ill hospitalized adults were interviewed after the fifth day of their hospitalization. Comforting behaviors which they identified were placed into two main categories: behaviors which provided physiological comfort such as relief from or prevention of pain, attention to personal hygiene needs and awareness of food preferences; and behaviors which provided psychological comfort in terms of fulfilling social, religious, and cognitive needs. In part the data supported the evaluation of the needs of the terminally ill as perceived by the health care professionals, and indicated a need for individualized care of the hospitalized terminally ill adult.
This paper has been withdrawn.