Every nurse cares for patients facing end-of-life issues at some point in their career. For some nurses, working with terminally ill patients is an infrequent, yet important experience. For others, it is part of their daily nursing work. Fast Facts for the Hospice Nurse: A Concise Guide to End-of-Life Care, Second edition, like the first edition, is a valuable, up-to-date resource for all nurses whether they work with terminally ill patients on a daily basis or only occasionally. This book is for nurses who are seeking to specialize in hospice, those who work in long-term care settings, postacute care settings, acute care setting, and those who are seeking to enhance their knowledge of end-of-life care within other specialties. This second edition has been thoroughly revised, updated, and expanded. New information has been added on the role of the hospice nurse as case manager, cultural issues, such as working with members of the LGBTQ+ community, and special communication considerations, such as working with deaf and hard of hearing patients and those who have limited English proficiency. In terms of symptom management at the end of life, new chapters have been added on the use of cannabis, nonpharmacological pain management interventions, wound care, care of the dying patient, and postmortem care. Each section of the second edition of this book focuses on nursing care at the end of life and offers concise, yet thorough, coverage of important topics. Throughout the book, numerous resources are provided and ‘Fast Facts’ boxes are used to highlight important pieces of information. Treatment options are also included in tables and figures throughout the book. Screening tools for depression, anxiety, and risk for wounds are included as well as scales that are important in hospice care, such as the Palliative Performance Scale and the Karnofsky Performance Scale.
