Nurse’s Roles in Patient-Family Decision Making for Palliative Patients in Indonesia and Malaysia

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The limited palliative care services can affect the late in palliative care management, such as late in decision making. Decision making is one of the crucial processes that every patient with life-threatening health life-limiting illness needs to overcome. Nurses can be the third party between the patients and physicians in helping them with decision making. AIM: The aim of this study was to explore the differences perspectives of palliative care decision making for palliative patients and families in Indonesia and Malaysia. METHODOLOGY: The study design used qualitative method with the phenomenology approach. The sample size of this study was 12 participants from two different study settings. They were three palliative nurses and three physicians from each country, selected by purposive sampling. The study was carried out at PKU Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta Hospital and Tuanku Fauziah Hospital Kangar, Perlis, Malaysia. Data collection used in-depth interview. The interpretative phenomenology analysis was used to analyze the data. RESULTS: There were differences in the perspectives of palliative care services in Indonesia and Malaysia based on the culture form each of the countries. Nurses played a supportive role in ensuring that the care delivered to the patients and families were effective and efficient. Lack of staff was one of the challenges for Indonesia and Malaysia palliative care services need to face. CONCLUSION: Three themes emerged from the collected data; there were views on palliative care, nurses’ supportive roles, and limited resources. To encounter the challenges and difficulties that interrupt the care delivery to the patients, nurses need to improve knowledge about palliative and their skills.