Cuidados especializados à pessoa em situação crítica
: o fim de vida em unidades de cuidados intensivos

Translated title of the thesis: Specialized care to the critically ill person: the end of life in intensive care units
  • Carina Duarte Costa (Student)

Student thesis: Master's Thesis

Abstract

This report, prepared as part of the Master's Degree in Nursing with Specialization in Medical-Surgical Nursing in the area of Specialization in Critical Care Nursing, of the Institute of Health Sciences - Porto, Universidade Católica Portuguesa, reflects the path taken during the final internship. This internship took place in the Intensive Care Unit and the Burn Unit, and allowed the acquisition of master’s and specialist’s competencies in the field of critical care. A descriptive critical and reflective methodology was chosen for the elaboration. The first internship, conducted in a multipurpose emergency department, allowed to approach the critically ill patient in urgent and emergent situations. It was possible to produce two documents as a contribution to the improvement of care, namely the management of stroke patients in the emergency department and the defibrillator bag checklist. Thus, the stay in this context allowed the beginning of the acquisition of skills in the field of the person in critical condition. In the second year, the internship was carried out in a multivalent intensive care unit and in a Monovalent Unit-Burned Unit. Through the stay in both settings, similarities in nursing care were identified, namely in the approach to critically ill patients, in nursing care management and quality, and in the development of professional learning. Despite this, the specificity inherent in each context provides unique knowledge. In the Polyvalent Intensive Care Unit, it was possible to develop the theme of end-of-life care in a intensive care unit, through training. This is a current and pertinent topic because, due to medical developments and increased life expectancy, we are constantly faced with patients with acute chronic diseases who will not have a reversal of the reason for hospitalization. Thus, there is a need for a paradigm shift towards palliation rather than cure, providing care that ensures quality of life, comfort, and well-being until the last days of the patient's life, accompanying him/her and the family in the acceptance of death as a natural and imminent destiny. In the burnt unit, the quality of care is also a relevant theme through training on the maintenance and handling of the central vascular. By staying in the internship contexts, it was possible to provide differentiated and specialized care to patients in the area of critical care, develop activities, and constantly reflect on the practices. This allowed for the acquisition of technical, scientific, and human skills that consolidated the specific competencies of the master's degree and the specialist in Medical-Surgical Nursing in the area of Critical Care, which were necessary to obtain the title of master's and specialist.
Date of Award25 May 2023
Original languagePortuguese
Awarding Institution
  • Universidade Católica Portuguesa
SupervisorIrene Oliveira (Supervisor)

Keywords

  • Medical- surgical nursing
  • Critical patient
  • Competencies
  • End-of-life care
  • Quality of care

Designation

  • Mestrado em Enfermagem

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