Nurses' perceptions and experiences of palliative care for patients with cancer.

BACKGROUND

Nurses are an integral part of the multidisciplinary team and are ideally positioned to offer palliative care services.

AIM: To explore nurses' perceptions and experiences in providing palliative care to patients with cancer.

METHODS

This study employed a descriptive qualitative research design, with data collected through in-depth interviews. A total of 13 nurses participated in the interviews, which were transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis was performed using ATLAS.ti software, adopting an inductive approach.

FINDINGS: Four major themes were identified: (1) perceptions of nurses, (2) experiences of nurses, (3) roles of nurses and (4) challenges in providing palliative care.

CONCLUSIONS

Nurses play an integral role in palliative care, but face challenges that constrain their services. Key stakeholders should support nurses by providing them with adequate resources and training in palliative care.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Healthcare systems should support nurses' wellbeing through sustainable strategies such as resilience training, peer support, flexible work arrangements and culturally appropriate coping mechanisms, while integrating palliative care into routine oncology services with clear referral pathways.