"Putting your house in order" - an exploration of the idea of a good death among people dying in mid-life
Date
2006-11-16T08:56:13Z
Authors
Charlton, Diana Eleanor Marjorie
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Abstract
This qualitative study set out to explore the idea of a good death through
in-depth interviews with six terminally ill patients with cancer aged between
thirty-seven and fifty-two, in other words in mid-life. Thematic content analysis
was used to examine overt and covert themes revealed in semi-structured
interviews that had been transcribed verbatim. Significant fear of dying was
revealed and although respondents did not seem to have a conscious idea of a
good death, they had a clear concept of good dying. Two key components of
good dying were not being in pain or distress from physical symptoms, and
wanting to drift off into a final “sleep” rather than being fully alert until the end. It
was noticeable that, whether or not patients had religious convictions, relatively
little attention appeared to be paid directly to what might or might not follow the
moment of death itself, for example an afterlife. Preparation for good dying
included completing a will, sorting out financial affairs and, for some patients,
planning a funeral. At times this preparation also included trying to mend
conflicted relationships and make plans for the ongoing care of family
members. It is postulated that these preparations helped re-constitute a sense
of order that had been shattered by the chaos of being declared terminally ill at
a time of life when this was non-normative. Moreover, taking care of practical
needs re-established a sense of agency, helped achieve some sense of closure
and symbolised a measure of acceptance of their dying status. Respondents
did not seem to experience external pressure from others to die in a certain
way, although two people were particularly aware of their influence on how
others in the family felt and thus tended to pretend to feel better than they did.
Description
Student Number : 7916069 -
MA research report -
School of Human and Community Development -
Faculty of Humanities
Keywords
good death, terminally ill patients, mid-life, fear of dying, pain or distress, drift off into a final “sleep”