End-of-life care provided by nurses in palliative settings necessitates conscious awareness of several factors that contribute to the effectiveness of care. Factors that are significantly important components of nursing in end-of-life care include communication skills, advance care planning, sensitivity to contextual and cultural factors, support from the healthcare team, and continuing education.

Communication skills

The importance of communication skills in end-of-life care was acknowledged by Clayton et al. (2007), who developed a set of communication guidelines that nurses could adhere to in the deliverance of end-of-life care. These guidelines were represented by the acronym PREPARED, and they included: to prepare for discussion, relate to patients and their families, elicit preferences held by patients and families, present information, acknowledgement of emotions and concerns, realistic hope, encourage questions, and documentation of information and documents (Clayton et al., 2007). Specific factors regarding the details of information communicated to patients are important in discussions...
[ View Full Essay]