I'm in my final year of nursing school, and we have to write a comprehensive case study on a patient we followed during our clinical rotation. We have to analyze their condition, the interventions, the outcomes, and relate it all to evidence-based practice.
I chose a patient I'll call "Mr. J." He was an older gentleman with end-stage COPD. I spent three shifts with him. We talked about his grandkids, his time in the army, and his favorite fishing spots. He was so much more than his diagnosis.
I did all the things right. I helped with his breathing treatments. I positioned him to ease his work of breathing. I listened to his lung sounds. I documented everything. But last week, I found out he passed away. It wasn't unexpected, but it still hit me like a ton of bricks.
Now I have to write this case study. And it feels so... clinical. So cold. I have to write about his "declining respiratory status" and "ineffective airway clearance." I have to analyze what the team could have done differently, even though we did everything we could. The rubric wants me to be objective and analytical.
But all I can think about is how he asked me to find the TV remote because he wanted to watch the game. Or how he called me "kiddo" and made me smile. How do you balance the clinical analysis with the human element? How do you write about a person's final days like they're just a collection of symptoms and interventions?
I know this is part of being a nurse. We have to be professional. But this case study feels like I'm reducing his life to a textbook example. It feels disrespectful.
Has anyone else had to write a case study on a patient who impacted them emotionally? Any advice on how to get through it without completely falling apart?
I chose a patient I'll call "Mr. J." He was an older gentleman with end-stage COPD. I spent three shifts with him. We talked about his grandkids, his time in the army, and his favorite fishing spots. He was so much more than his diagnosis.
I did all the things right. I helped with his breathing treatments. I positioned him to ease his work of breathing. I listened to his lung sounds. I documented everything. But last week, I found out he passed away. It wasn't unexpected, but it still hit me like a ton of bricks.
Now I have to write this case study. And it feels so... clinical. So cold. I have to write about his "declining respiratory status" and "ineffective airway clearance." I have to analyze what the team could have done differently, even though we did everything we could. The rubric wants me to be objective and analytical.
But all I can think about is how he asked me to find the TV remote because he wanted to watch the game. Or how he called me "kiddo" and made me smile. How do you balance the clinical analysis with the human element? How do you write about a person's final days like they're just a collection of symptoms and interventions?
I know this is part of being a nurse. We have to be professional. But this case study feels like I'm reducing his life to a textbook example. It feels disrespectful.
Has anyone else had to write a case study on a patient who impacted them emotionally? Any advice on how to get through it without completely falling apart?
