Nurses' Awareness of Death and Meaning of Life / 기본간호학회지

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: This study was done to investigate nurses' awareness of death and the meaning of life and identify factors influencing the meaning of life. METHODS: Participants were 198 women nurses who had experienced the death of patients. They answered a self-administered questionnaire including demographics, awareness of death scale and meaning in life II scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, t-test, ANOVA, Scheffe test, and multiple regression (enter method). RESULTS: The average score for awareness of death was 127.3+/-10.14. This score is moderate not biased toward positive or negative. The average score for meaning of life was 130.3+/-9.42 with 51% for loss steps, 45.5% for pursuit steps and 3.5% for discovery steps to the meaning of life. Factors affecting the meaning of life were religion, Buddhism (beta=6.25, p=.015) or Atheist (beta=5.91, p=.017), educational level, Master's or higher (beta=16.22, p=.003), work department, special department (beta=3.49, p=.017). CONCLUSIONS: Results of the study indicate a need to provide nursing programs that will promote nurses' spiritual and inner maturity.