A OBSTINAÇÃO TERAPÊUTICA COMO UMA QUESTÃO ÉTICA / The therapeutic obstinacy as an ethical matter
AUTOR(ES)
Karen Knopp de Carvalho
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO
2005
RESUMO
Questions involving the therapeutic obstinacy are present in the everyday life of Intensive Care Units (ICUs), where different decisions are made, in relation to the fate of the treatment of patients who are about to die and the dead ones. This topic is still seldom discussed among professionals in the field of health who work on ICUs, specially by nursing professionals, who are responsible for implementing the procedures prescribed by the doctors, which, in certain times, they might disagree with. Therefore, this study aims at the following: - Knowing if the nurses acknowledge the prescription of futile treatments in the environment where they work; - Knowing about the feeling of the nurses involved in the implementation of the treatments which they consider futile; - Knowing the strategies built by the nurses when facing these situations. 6 semi-structured interviews were made with nurses who work at ICUs. Based on the analysis of the data collected, four categories were built: - Therapeutic obstinacy: what is it? the nurses, who work at ICUs, do not know the term therapeutic obstinacy, but realize it is very present in their practices; - The therapeutic obstinacy as a prolongation of the suffering: the professionals consider that the therapeutic obstinacy prolongs the suffering of the patient and its family and, also, that its suffering and the nursing people; - The therapeutic obstinacy as the priority of the cure: the nurses identify in their everyday practice obstinate treatments; however, they believe it is necessary to invest in the cure of the patient, highlighting its unquestionable situation; Facing the therapeutic obstinacy: humanized care? some strategies are presented in order to face this topic, considering the participation of the patient as vital in the process of making decisions. The work shows the necessity and the importance of evaluating the therapeutic measures which need to be used in the treatment of patients who are about to die or the ones who have died, in a way that they can live the final moments of their lives with quality, considering that when the cure is not possible anymore, it is necessary to care for, worrying about the sick person and respecting its integrity, recalling that the care is the base for the professional practice of nursing.
ASSUNTO(S)
pacientes terapêutica saúde morte ética enfermagem enfermagem therapeutic patients health death ethics nursing
