中華心理衛生協會

Purpose: Dying agitation is a common occurrence at the end of terminal cancer patients' lives. The purpose of this article is to explore how agitation integrated with shattered remembrances are correlatively developed in the dying phase. Methods: By conducting phenomenological analysis on cases, using field method and participant observation method, this study emerges from field data collected from ten dying persons in a hospice ward of a southern Taiwan Medical Center. Results: This finding shows that a terminal cancer patient will gradually shed his or her social identified ego parts, as a result of the progressive shutdown of multiple body systems which results in dying agitation. Dying agitation is associated with a dying person's lived experience, which is composed of flash memory, imagination and temporality of his or her shattered remembrances. Conclusions: This study explores an alternative approach to dying agitation and offers assessment connection with shattered remembrances for terminal cancer patients in the dying phase. Based on these findings, it may imply further research and as support for training nurse's education and clinical practice.