Table 3 Experiences of ICU healthcare professionals during the three stages of the process of the WLST process
Physician n = 79 | Nurses n = 127 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
OD(-) n = 24 | OD( +) n = 55 | OD(-) n = 37 | OD( +) n = 90 | |
Stage 1. WLST decision-making process | ||||
Factors influencing the decision: from 0 to 10 | ||||
Bad prognosis and no treatment plan | 10 (9–10) | 10 (9–10) | 9 (8–10) | 10 (8–10) |
Patient’s wishes | 6 (5–8) | 7 (1–9) | 8 (5–9) | 5 (2–9) |
Wishes of relatives | 6 (3–8) | 7 (2–9) | 7 (3–9) | 8 (5–9) |
Possibility of organ donation | 1 (0–2) | 0 (0–5) | 6 (2–9) | 8 (3–9) |
Those who most influenced the decision | ||||
The medical staff | 9 (9–10) | 8 (8–10) | 9 (7–10) | 9 (7–10) |
The nursing team | 5 (5–8) | 5 (3–8) | 5 (3–7) | 5 (2–7) |
The relatives | 6 (3–8) | 6 (5–8) | 5 (3–9) | 8 (3–9) |
The Organ Procurement Organization’s team | 0 (0–1) | 0 (0–1) | 5 (1–8) | 5 (0–7) |
Stage 2. Period between the WLST decision and its actual implementation | ||||
The length of this period was motivated by | ||||
Psychological support for relatives | 8 (6–9) | 7 (1–8) | 8 (2–10) | 7 (5–10) |
Relatives’ availability and/or wishes | 8 (6–9) | 7 (1–9) | 9 (5–10) | 8 (5–10) |
Research for medical unsuitability | 4 (1–7) | 5 (1–7) | 5 (0–9) | 7 (2–10) |
Logistical issues | 1 (0–5) | 7 (3–9)* | 1 (0–5) | 4 (0–9)* |
Legal issues | 1 (0–6) | 1 (0–5) | 0 (0–3) | 1 (0–5) |
Purpose of this period: from end-of-life support (0) to organ donation (10) | 1 (0–4) | 5 (4–7)* | 0 (0–1) | 9 (5–10)* |
Stage 3. Dying and death process | ||||
I felt I changed my usual end-of-life care practices from No (0) to Yes (10) | - | 2 (0–8) | - | 0 (0–5) |
Purpose of the WLST implementation was: from end-of-life support (0) to organ donation (10) | - | 5 (1–9) | - | 9 (5–10) |