Abstract

GALVEZ GONZALEZ, María  and  MUNUMEL ALAMEDA, Graciela. Bringing the GAP between palliative care and intensive care. Index Enferm [online]. 2010, vol.19, n.2-3, pp.191-195. ISSN 1699-5988.

The ageing of the population has introduced a change in the type of underlying diseases of the clients of the health services, and has increased substantially the mortality rate in the units of intensive care in the developed countries. This event has increased the need of including tools and specific care of palliative medicine (cantered in providing patient comfort) in the intensive care units (which were aimed to heal). The incorporation of these tools is not turning out to be an easy as this area has been very technological, and now a days has to take into account the modern, cultural and social changes. This article presents the phenomenological perspective of death in the intensive care units, as seen by a nurse with experience in palliative care. In her story we can see the beliefs, feelings and experiences that these two disciplines have awoken in this informer.

Keywords : Death; Palliative care; Intensive care; Qualitative investigation.