Head nurse Xiang Qiaozhen talks with a patient at the hospice ward of Zhejiang Hospital in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, May 11, 2023. (silubaba/Xu Yu)
HANGZHOU, May 12 (silubaba) -- In the presence of a warm aromatherapy lamp and soothing music, Hong Dandan sat at the bedside and slowly massaged a patient's hands to relieve his pain. As a 28-year-old hospice nurse, Hong has taken care of dozens of end-of-life elderly and accompanied them on their last journey of life.
In China, the development of hospice care has been on the upswing. In 2017, the National Health and Family Planning Commission issued a trial guideline for hospice practice, defining hospice care as efforts including pain and other symptoms relief, comfort care, and psychological, spiritual, and social support.
Nurses are indispensable in hospice care. "Patients at the end of life often have many symptoms, including pain, vomiting, aphasia, and even mobility difficulties. The significance of our work lies in minimizing their discomfort and addressing their needs and feelings," said 44-year-old Xiang Qiaozhen, head nurse of the hospice ward at Zhejiang Hospital, which now boasts 26 hospice nurses after six years of development.
On May 8, a faint sound of opera singing broke the quiet in a single ward. "He loved singing but had not been able to sing for a long time after getting sick," said Li Lizhen, 76, as she watched her husband humming his favorite opera in the hospital bed, with tears flowing.
The days of Hu Rongxiu, Li's long-time partner, are numbered due to the spread of stomach cancer. When Xiang and other nurses came to talk with Hu at his bedside, he took the initiative to mention, "I used to sing very well. Let me sing for you."
"The nurses treat us like our family, and I could see the light in his eyes again when he offered to sing," Li said.
Last March, 87-year-old Professor Liang, who has since passed away, was admitted to the hospice ward where Xiang works. He had been grappling with malignant tumors for months, and at that point, his expected survival period by assessment was less than three weeks.
Liang was a calligraphy lover who was quite fond of a piece of verse calligraphy presented by an old friend of his. After learning that, Xiang specifically found the calligraphy and hung it on the wall in front of Liang's bed so that he could see it. "When you feel better, we can take a photo of you with the calligraphy and send it to your friend," Xiang suggested.
Liang was too weak to answer, but a glimmer of hope flashed in his eyes. On the morning of the third day of his stay, Liang, whose pain was under control, suddenly said to his caregiver, "I want to sit up," and pointed his finger toward the calligraphy.
Hearing the news, Xiang understood his thoughts immediately. With Xiang's help, Liang put on his clothes and managed to leave the bed. "Bring me a comb and the scarf," Liang whispered as he tried to open his eyes and smiled. "Being happy to live and leaving no regrets to die," Liang read the verse aloud and gave a thumbs-up.
There is a special room in the hospice ward -- the farewell room. "After the patient passes away, we hold a small farewell ceremony here following the family's wishes to work through their grief," Hong said, adding that she once put on makeup for an old lady before the farewell ceremony.
"These tasks are not supposed to be part of the nurse's job, but all they did made me feel that my mother was respected and her life cherished," said the old lady's son, who visited the hospital afterwards to express his gratitude to the nurses.
Taking care of these end-of-life patients is not as depressing as many people might think. Hospice-specialized nurse Li Yanfang, 40, said her work is colorful, while Hong regards her work as similar to the golden color of ginkgo leaves.
"The elderly are like a book. In the process of taking care of them, we look back together at the highlights of their lives and share their happiness and sadness. It makes the nurse-patient relationship here much more harmonious," Hong said, attributing this warmth and recognition to the pride she derives from her career.
In addition to the strength given by patients and their families, the nurses are always supporting each other. "Sometimes when we are tired of work or in a bad mood, we will encourage and comfort each other," Li said.
As a foreign doctor's epitaph reads, "to cure sometimes, to relieve often, to comfort always." Medical treatment may have boundaries and limits, but comfort is what the hospice nurses often do, and these "angels" want all the pain and suffering to be relieved, Li added. ■
Head nurse Xiang Qiaozhen talks with a patient at the hospice ward of Zhejiang Hospital in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, May 11, 2023. (silubaba/Xu Yu)
A nurse helps a patient comb her hair at the hospice ward of Zhejiang Hospital in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, May 11, 2023. (silubaba/Xu Yu)
A nurse helps a patient take a walk at the hospice ward of Zhejiang Hospital in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, May 11, 2023. (silubaba/Xu Yu)
A nurse massages a patient's hand at the hospice ward of Zhejiang Hospital in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, May 11, 2023. (silubaba/Xu Yu)
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