Intensive Care Unit Nurses’ Perceptions of a Good Death and Influencing Factors

Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry & Psychology Vol.8 Issue.2

Doi:10.35365/ctjpp.26.2.09

 RESEARCH ARTICLE / ARAŞTIRMA YAZISI 

Intensive Care Unit Nurses’ Perceptions of a Good Death and Influencing Factors

Yoğun Bakım Ünitesi Hemşirelerinin İyi Ölüm Algıları ve Etkileyen Faktörler

Saide Faydalı¹ , Gülsüm Özcan Çetiner², Melike Biryol Durmaz³

Abstract:

A good death is a process in which the individuals can manage factors related to death, such as knowing its cause and predicting when and where it will occur, allowing planning and preparation for the EOL. ICU nurses, who most frequently encounter death and are at the center of EOL care, are significantly affected in terms of their perceptions, attitudes, and quality of care regarding a good death.  This study aimed to determine the levels of good death perception among ICU nurses and the factors influencing it. A descriptive and correlational study was conducted with 384 ICU nurses. Data were collected using the “Good Death Scale” and an online survey administered via snowball sampling. The mean Good Death Scale score for the nurses was 55.59 ± 7.78. Among the characteristics examined in nurses, only satisfaction with working in intensive care was associated with more positive perceptions of death. It was found that there was a low-level and significant correlation between good death perceptions and the fears of the nurses. The presence of a certain level of fear of death indicates that nurses develop defense mechanisms to maintain mental balance. The findings revealed that intensive care nurses held a positive view of a good death, seeing the dying process not merely as a clinical event but as a multidimensional psychosocial experience. It is recommended to provide psychosocial support for nurses, establish standardized procedures on death and grief management, and organize in-service training programs on these issues.

Keywords: Good death, Death, Fear, Intensive care unit, Nurse.

¹Necmettin Erbakan University, Faculty of Nursing, Department of Surgical Nursing, Konya, Türkiye.

²Suleyman Demirel University, Isparta Vocational School of Health Services, Department of Medical Services and Techniques, Anesthesia Program, Isparta, Türkiye.

³Selcuk University, Faculty of Nursing, Department of Surgical Nursing, Konya, Türkiye.

Address of Correspondence/Yazışma Adresi: Gülsüm Özcan Çetiner, Süleyman Demirel University, Isparta Health Services Vocational School, 32260, Çünür/Isparta, Türkiye, E-mail: [email protected]

Date of Received/Geliş Tarihi: 06.07.2025, Date of Revision/Düzeltme Tarihi: 19.11.2025, Date of Acceptance/Kabul Tarihi:24.11.2025, Date of Online Publication/Çevirimiçi Yayın Tarihi: 15.06.2026

Citing/Referans Gösterimi: Faydalı, S., Çetiner, G. Ö. & Durmaz, M. B. (2026). Intensive care unit nurses’ perceptions of a good death and influencing factors. Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry & Psychology, 8(2), 186-192, Doi:10.35365/ctjpp.26.2.09

© 2026 The Author(s). Published by Cyprus Mental Health Institute / Cyprus Turkish Journal of Psychiatry and Psychology (www.ktppdergisi.com). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/