How nurses shift from care of a brain-injured patient to maintenance of a brain-dead organ donor

• DOI: 10.4037/ajcc2001.10.5.306
• Publication Date: 2019-11-25T19:44:23Z
• Authors: L Day
• Keywords: Brain dead

BACKGROUND: The responsibility of obtaining organs for transplantation rests partly on critical care nurses. How nurses balance critically ill, brain-injured patients with the professional to procure is a question ethical and clinical importance. OBJECTIVES: To describe experiences in making shift from caring patient identified as potential organ donor maintaining brain-dead body. METHODS: An interpretive, phenomenological design was used. In 2 trauma centers, 9 were interviewed, observed. RESULTS: Identification donors made under conditions prognostic ambiguity. transition brain injury death period instability which team must decide quickly whether resuscitate order organs. After dead, nurses' relationship toward change. CONCLUSIONS: process identifying holding open tentative possibility procurement illustrates practical difficulties early referral organizations. Early an organization implies commitment that some may hesitate make because such changes their patient.