Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia
Corso di laurea in infermieristica - Sede di Modena
| Thesis Title | Nursing in palliative care: shiatsu and touch in the nursing process. |
|---|---|
| Name | Giovannini Gabriella |
| Supervisor(s) | Gelati Luca, Turrini Chiara |
| Academic Year | 2012/13 |
| Thesis type | Non research thesis |
Abstract
This thesis stems from my interest in shiatsu, that I have studied since three years ago and the need of "humanized" care for terminal patients. I wanted to look for: the nursing skills required in the palliative care, the opportunities for professional growth and the results of shiatsu treatments on oncological Italian patients. The working depth is set in three parts: the first researches regulations regarding palliative care and nursing, the second part is the presentation of shiatsu and third is the research of material in order to discover the effects on the sick. The first chapter of the thesis argues the importance of palliative care as a response to total pain and ends with the dates that have marked milestones: March 15, 2010, by Law n°38, which guarantees access to care and pain therapy; February 7, 2013, in which palliative care become a discipline; April 19, 2013 with the publication of the Core Curriculum nursing. The second chapter presents the holistic model of care; talking about complementary medicine, comes to massage and touch as treatment to modulate the body's energies. This way of treating leads to the importance of physical contact and shiatsu. In the third chapter shiatsu is defined, stressing the importance of contact, understood as communication, presence and attention. The fourth chapter describes the qualitative and quantitative studies in Milan and Rome. The conclusion is that shiatsu opens nursing the opportunity to broaden their knowledge and skills through complementary therapies, and that it reduces symptoms, improving the quality of life of the patient and helps the operator to establish an empathic relationship and to overcome the frustration at the inability to alleviate the suffering of the sick. As far as Italian health is concerned, psychological support to cancer patients is still a reality that struggles to make headway.