Professional Documents
Culture Documents
patients vital signs were stable, but based on her presentation I felt that the patient was not doing
well. I informed my preceptor about the patients change in presentation. After looking at the
patient, my preceptor agreed that the patient was weaker than before and decided to call the
palliative physician on the case.
The patient appeared to be in the process of dying. If it was decided that the patient was
in fact in the active stage of dying the family needed to be notified in order to say their goodbyes.
Although the patient had a DNR, the patient was receiving tube feedings. With the permission
from the family, I believed it would be best to remove the patient from the monitors and
discontinue feedings to maximize comfort, as the patient had outlined in her living will.
I made the right decision to notify my preceptor of the changes in the patients condition.
After doing a quick assessment on the patient, the physician stated that the patient was entering
the active stage of dying and the family needed to be notified immediately. The family agreed to
withdraw care and the patient was transferred off the unit to a palliative care suite. I noticed the
changes in the patients presentation and did not procrastinate in notifying the nurse. I do not
think there was anything else in this situation that I could have done better. Due to the quick
response from my preceptor and I, the family was able to properly say goodbye to their loved
one.
4
References
Harvey, C., & Tveit, L. (1994). Clinical exemplars to recognize excellence in nursing practice.
Orthopaedic Nursing, 13(4), 45-53.