Expert nursing care is essential for patients’ well-being, especially for those who are terminally ill
KARACHI: In the past, nursing students would learn only about the anatomy and physiology of the human body. Nowadays, students are learning about the complete lives and well-being of people, such as a physically ill child struggling for safety in an abusive family, an adolescent coping with self-esteem and ego issues, and a young adult grieving or feeling stigmatised with the diagnosis of cancer and its complications.
This is the world of oncology, as cancer rates in Pakistan continue to grow. Expert nursing care is essential for patients’ well-being, especially for those who are terminally ill. It is usually the nurse who spends the most amount of time with the patient and his or her family. The oncology nurse provides the type of care that allows patients and families to grow together in the difficult experience.
The role of an oncology nurse also includes imparting information and education in the bereavement process, clinical acknowledgment of abnormal bereavement, offering emotional support, extending communication with the bereaved family after death, enabling effective palliative care which focuses on spiritual, psychological, physical and social aspects of a patient’s life. They are also supposed to encourage caregivers to maintain a healthy lifestyle. This is a positive development in the field of nursing, globally, and it is hoped that Pakistani institutions will adopt such lessons in their curriculum as well.
Saima Sajjad Bhimani
Published in The Express Tribune, January 15th, 2016.
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