Loss can be defined as an unavoidable experience that occurs in the life of every person at the moment when something valued changes and is no longer available or disappears. For any person, the fundamental loss of a person and of all those around him is death. Faced with any loss and, especially, with death, the person develops a duel, that is, an adaptive response of natural origin that consists of different stages, which can overlap, alternate over time, or even never appear depending on the situation. own person. Although the order in which the duel usually appears is as follows:
Denial, the first of the stages of mourning
In this first phase, the person refuses to believe that the loss is occurring, so the role of the nurse is to provide verbal support to the patient without reinforcing his denial, and to examine his own behavior to ensure that he does not share the loss. patient denial.
Gonna
The patient or family may direct their anger at the nurse or other healthcare staff over issues that would not normally bother them. The role of the nurse is to help the patient understand that anger is a normal response to this type of loss, to avoid retaliation.
Negotiation, the third stage of mourning
In this phase, the person will try to negotiate to avoid the loss, even expressing feelings such as fear of punishment for past sins, real or imagined, so the role of the nurse is to listen carefully and encourage the patient to to speak to alleviate guilt and irrational fear.
Depression
In this phase, the patient expresses his sadness for what has happened and for what cannot be, so the nurse’s job is to allow the patient to express this sadness and to communicate correctly in a non-verbal way. For example, sitting quietly without expecting conversation, conveying affection through a caress or hug, looking into his eyes, showing empathy, etc.
Acceptance, the final stage of grief
During this last phase, the person comes to accept the loss and may have less interest in the environment and in supportive people. The nurse’s role is to help family and friends understand the patient’s decreased need for socialization.
So it can be said that it is very important that the nursing professional knows how to identify the phase in which each patient is in order to offer them the care that best suits their needs and thus contribute to their well-being and comfort in the final process. of the life.