Death in hospital wards : medical students', residents', and doctors' experiences with patient mortality

Abstract

This study focuses on the lived experiences of medical students, residents and doctors who experience death of patients in hospital by looking into the emotional and psychological impact the death of patients had or has on the subjects of the study. This study was done by means of a phenomenological approach using semistructured interviews and was aimed to uncover the subjective experiences of the subjects. An assortment of two medical students and four doctors with varying levels of experience in patient death and palliative care work were interviewed. Several common themes were identified and elaborated upon. The findings suggested that patient death can be a saddening and/shocking event, that physicians struggle with numerous emotions, and that desensitization occurs to a certain extent. The study also uncovered various coping methods and strategies used to get over painful deaths and significant changes in perceptions that developed over numerous experiences concerning patient death and the handling of dying patients.