The Impact of Unusual End-of-Life Phenomena on Hospice Palliative Care Volunteers and Their Perceived Needs for Training to Respond to Them

Abstract

Thirty-nine hospice palliative care volunteers completed a survey examining (a) their beliefs about end-of-life phenomena (EOLP), (b) the impact of EOLP on their lives, and (c) their perceived needs for training to respond to them. Forty-nine percent of the volunteers either had personally witnessed an EOLP in their volunteer work and/or had a patient or patient’s family member report an EOLP to them. More than half of the volunteers strongly agreed or agreed that EOLP have influenced their religious beliefs and their spirituality in a positive way (53% and 59%, respectively). Eighty-nine percent of the volunteers indicated that they had never received any training about EOLP, and nearly all of the volunteers were interested in learning more about EOLP. After completing the survey, 59% of the volunteers shared stories about EOLP they had either personally witnessed or been told about. The most frequently reported experiences involved deathbed visions. The implications of these findings are discussed.