Kelsi Farren

After visiting various healthcare centers around Ireland,

LauraLynn, a hospice facility for children, exemplified many values

identified in the Palliative Care and Communications textbook. Chapter

8 is titled “Communication in Palliative nursing” and describes different

phases of the nurse-patient relationship. Here there are three phases. The

introductory phase, the working phase, and the termination phase. A

crucial part of the first phase is establishing trust, and LauraLynn works

effortlessly to do so. We were shown a suite where the child stays in one

room, and the parents and family stay in a connecting room. The facility

explained that part of doing this was to show the parents that the nursing

team can adequately care for their child. When trust is established and

the parents feel ready, they can move to the bedrooms upstairs for

respite.

Part of the nurse-family relationship is assisting the family with

closure and bereavement. At LauraLynn, their efforts to do this revolve

around memory making. We were shown many foot and hand molds that

acted as family activities while doubling as tangible memorabilia for

after the child passes away. They talked about other family activities
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they facilitate such as Christmas tree ornament making and trips to the

zoo. They are a team who understands that every moment counts, so

they strive to make the time they have left positive and memorable.

When the child does eventually pass away, they allow the family to stay

in the butterfly suite. It is a two-room accommodation that allows the

family to spend a few last hours with their child before funerals

arrangements are made. The staff described this as a positive experience

for the families for it assists them with closure. Often times in the

butterfly suite, families participate in memory making activities.

Chapter 8 also discusses the importance of advanced directives and

the responsibility nurses have to start a conversation about them.

Although advanced directives, such as DNR forms, are very helpful

during hard times, many problems arise this them. For instance,

hospitals have limited access to them. In the united states, there is no

system where the hospital can look up your end of life wishes. In an

American hospital, if a patient were to come in unconscious and have a

DNR, the hospital would not know. On the other hand, Ireland hospitals

do have a bridge to patient’s advanced directives, stated by Laura in

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lecture and the palliative care team member. This surprised me after

discovering how far behind Ireland is with technology compared to

America. Advanced directives honor the patients last wishes which is

why so much emphasis is put on them. It takes stress off of families

going through hard times and diminishes ambiguity regarding what a

loved one would have wanted.

Chapter 29 in our textbook revolves around patient centered care

and that is exactly what I saw at the hospice facility in Galway. The

major point they explained was it is not about the money, it is about the

care of the patient. The hospice center provides care free of charge and

that is not something easy to do. They rely heavily on fundraisers and

donations to keep them afloat. In America, healthcare is not free

anywhere. The chapter goes on to explain how patient centered care is

caring for the whole person, whether it is spiritual needs or physical

needs. The hospice center meet all their patient’s needs free of charge,

where in America they might not be met due to financial burdens.