VUB researcher aims to ease discomfort around end-of-life suffering

VUB researcher aims to ease discomfort around end-of-life suffering

Death and the process of dying are increasingly the remit of clinical and medical professionals, creating a cultural and social distance. This distance from death has a major impact on how comfortable or uncomfortable many people feel about the idea of dying. What do you say to someone who is seriously ill and wants to talk about death? What do you do when you see someone suffering significant mental deterioration? Often, our attitude makes us feel insecure and we choose to avoid those people.

© Bert Quintiens
© Bert Quintiens

To better understand the discomfort people feel when they witness someone suffering or dying, and whether these feelings are related to specific personal characteristics or experiences, Bert Quintiens of the End-of-Life Care research group at the VUB conducted a broad survey for his doctoral research. Nearly 1,900 people from across Flanders provided data about their emotional experience of having seen another person die. “Not unexpectedly, we found that having to watch people suffer in pain or having to give someone the news that they are going to die caused the most discomfort,” says Quintiens. The study also found that the feeling of discomfort decreases significantly if a person has had previous contact with death through a professional and/or cultural experience (such as through working as a nurse, or having read about death or dying), by having been a carer, or if they have knowledge of palliative care. “This means we can remove the taboo around death and end-of-life guidance by increasing people’s exposure to this natural phenomenon through cultural and personal experiences, as well as by increasing general knowledge about palliative care,” Quintiens says. “Our study is a great example that helps to identify social elements of compassion, and it aligns with the VUB’s statement of intent as a Compassionate University.”

The study was published in the November 2023 edition of the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management:

Quintiens, B., Smets, T., Chambaere, K., Van den Block, L., Deliens, L., Sallnow, L., & Cohen, J. (2023). Discomfort with suffering and dying, a cross-sectional survey of the general public. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 66, 529-540.e6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2023.07.003


Contact

Bert Quintiens bert.quintiens@vub.be 02 477 47 10

Koen Stein
Koen Stein Perscontact wetenschap & innovatie

 

GF
About Press - Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Vrije Universiteit Brussel is an internationally oriented university in Brussels, the heart of Europe. By providing excellent research and education on a human scale, VUB wants to make an active and committed contribution to a better society.

The World Needs You

The Vrije Universiteit Brussel assumes its scientific and social responsibility with love and decisiveness. That’s why VUB launched the platform De Wereld Heeft Je Nodig – The World Needs You, which brings together ideas, actions and projects based on six Ps. The first P stands for People, because that’s what it’s all about: giving people equal opportunities, prosperity, welfare, respect. Peace is about fighting injustice, big and small, in the world. Prosperity combats poverty and inequality. Planet stands for actions on biodiversity, climate, air quality, animal rights... With Partnership, VUB is looking for joint actions to make the world a better place. The sixth and last P is for Poincaré, the French philosopher Henri Poincaré, from whom VUB derives its motto that thinking should submit to nothing except the facts themselves. VUB is an ‘urban engaged university’, strongly anchored in Brussels and Europe and working according to the principles of free research.

www.vub.be/dewereldheeftjenodig

 


Press - Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Pleinlaan 2
1050 Brussel