Death and Dying

What is the most common pathway to dying?

Death as a result of having a chronic disease

When does death often occur slowly?

Death in affluent countries

What was the result of death before modern medicine?

Death arrived quickly and was embedded in daily life

What was the result of death when medical science started?

Death relocated to old age and hospitals

What is functional death?

Heartbeat and breathing have ceased

What is brain death?

All signs of brain activity have ceased

End of life care instruction?

Courses that cover pain maintenance, ethics of withdrawing treatment, etc.

What is palliative care?

Services in a hospital or home care program that provide pain and symptom control. Can still get cure-oriented treatment.

Home hospice care?

Trained caregivers who offer sensitive end-of-life care at home, plus family support. Does not include attempts to cure the person dying.

What is advance directive?

A document spelling out instructions for life-prolonging treatment if the person becomes irretrievably ill and cannot communicate their wishes

Living will?

People who spell out their wishes for life-sustaining treatment should they become permanently incapacitated

Durable power of attorney for health care?

People designate a specific surrogate to make health care decisions if they become incapacitated.

Do not resuscitate order(DNR)?

If the person’s breathing or heart stops efforts should not be made to revive them

What is passive euthanasia?

withholding potentially life-saving interventions that might keep a terminally ill or permanently comatose person alive

What is active euthanasia?

A deliberate health care intervention that helps a person die

What is physician-assisted death?

A doctor prescribes a lethal medication to a terminally ill person who wants to die

Denial(shock) in the dying process?

People resist the idea that they are going to die

Anger(emotion) in the dying process?

People direct anger around them

Bargaining in the dying process?

People try to negotiate their way out of death

Depression in the dying process?

People who are overwhelmed with a deep sense of loss

Acceptance (increased self-reliance) in the dying process?

People that have made peace with their death

What is Middle knowledge included in the dying process?

People can know(cognitively) that they are dying yet not come to terms with the fact (emotionally).

Bereavement process?

acknowledgement of the fact that one has experienced

Grief process?

emotional response to one’s loss

What happens when their is a death of a child for a parent?

The death of a child often produces profound grief, guilt, and anger.

What is the most frequent cause of death in childhood?

The most frequent cause is an accident

How old are children when they fully understand death?

4-10

Universality

All living things eventually die. begins development before age 5

Irreversibility

The body cannot be made alive again. Develops shortly after universality

Nonfunctionally

After death, one’s capabilities cease. Develops around 5-6

Causality

Many factors cause death. Develops by age 6-7

Noncorporeal continuity

A number of environmental and cultural aspects influences beliefs about the afterlife.

How is death often discussed?

By using metaphors that can undermine children’s biological understanding of death.

Child life specialist?

Healthcare professional providing bereavement support by helping families navigate grief and loss.