The staff too busy to care for dying patients
TWO-THIRDS of nurses say they do not have enough time to care for dying patients, a survey has revealed.
And more than half said they had seen patients die in hospital – despite wishing to spend their last moments at home – because of a lack of care in the community facilities. The survey of 993 nurses also found that 2 per cent had not received any specific training on end-of-life care.
Experts said it was a ‘national disgrace’ and that the findings of the survey provide further worrying evidence of a lack of care for patients at the end of their lives.
One nurse – speaking anonymously – blamed a ‘lack of staff, task-orientated wards and time constraints’. She added: ‘That feels awful. I wish it was different.’
Another said: ‘The biggest frustration is not being able to get patients coming to the end of their lives out of hospital in time. I find it distressing. It isn’t right.’
The survey of nurses was commissioned jointly by the Nursing Standard journal and cancer charity Marie Curie, with 67 per cent of respondents claiming that they did not have sufficient time to provide high-quality care to patients at the ends of their lives.
Nursing Standard editor Graham Scott said: ‘The way we care for patients at the end of life is a barometer of the quality of care in the health sector as a whole.
‘Nurses are telling us they are under immense strain and the service is reaching breaking point. The fact that dying patients, and their families, are suffering as a result is a national disgrace.’
Although the number of nurses has risen in recent years the rate has not kept pace with increasing demand. Earlier this month it emerged that applicants for nursing courses had fallen almost a quarter in a year after the Government axed bursaries for trainees.
Dee Sissons, director of nursing at Marie Curie, said: ‘The findings show the challenges of providing high-quality care to people towards the end of life in the extremely pressured NHS.
‘It is also worrying to see that many dying patients with limited time left are stuck unnecessarily in hospital.
‘To provide the best possible care for patients, the staff must have the time to develop their skills and have access to appropriate training and support.’