The diverse faces of child death from the perspective of doctors and nurses

Abstract

Introduction: Sickness and death of children are little accepted events in society. Objective: To analyze the
perception of intensive care doctors and nurses about the death of children. Methods: Qualitative approach study, with doctors and nurses from three Intensive Care Units (Pediatric ICU, Neonatal ICU and Cardiological ICU) of a teaching hospital. Recorded semi-structured interviews were carried out, transcribed and analyzed according to content analysis in the thematic modality. Results: 14 professionals were interviewed, aged 28-53 years, with a minimum of 2 years of intensive care experience time and an average of 43 hours of work per week. The feelings and attitudes towards death emerged from the speech analysis and were categorized in the following themes: perception
of death in childhood, therapeutic obstinacy and suffering in meeting with families. Professionals recognized gaps in training during undergraduate and graduate studies to deal with the death of children. Suffering, anxiety, guilt, frustration, impotence and guilt were reported, demonstrating the complexity of child death situations. The clinical condition and the child’s ability to interact influenced the attitudes and the professional’s way of dealing
with death. Spirituality was an important mechanism of confrontation. Conclusion: The death of children in ICU causes ambivalent feelings in doctors and nurses responsible for their care. Professionals suffer for the death of someone who has not yet enjoyed life, but accept it when they think about the end of a life marked by suffering and limitations imposed by the disease. Contact with the subject of death during professional training and in the regular discussions of services can help in the way to deal with this event. Spirituality was an important resource of coping.