Description: viii, 54 leaves 29 cm

Notes: Includes abstract; Thesis (M.S.)--Clarion University of Pennsylvania and Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, 2015.

Summary: Nurse practitioners as professional health care providers are subject to participate in end-of-life care. As practitioners, they could be intimately involved with patients during the end stage of their chronic diseases. This research sought to understand how NPs rate their comfort level and formal education when discussing EOL care with patients and families. The research questions which guided this study are: (1) How comfortable are NPs in northwestern Pennsylvania when discussing EOL care with patients and families? (2) How does formal education correlate with an NP’s level of comfort when discussing EOL care with patients and families? This research utilized Ruland and Moore’s theory of peaceful end-of-life (1998) as the theoretical framework. NPs in northwestern Pennsylvania were surveyed in this study. The information gathered in this survey revealed the comfort level of NPs when discussing EOL care with patients and families and the correlation of formal education with NPs comfort in these discussions. The findings from this research indicated that advanced education for management of EOL care may improve an NP’s comfort level when discussing EOL care with patients and families.