Although terminal care literature may address the importance of the family in the patient’s treatment, the family as a whole is seldom considered as the unit of care. A family system’s perspective can offer a more holistic approach to providing care to the terminally ill. In this paper, Rosen’s model of family system response to stress is adapted to provide a framework for understanding and helping hospice families. To as certain information critical to the development of a comprehensive care plan, a general format is outlined. Case examples illustrate the application of this approach.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Rando TA: Grief, dying, and death. Champaign, Research Press, 1984.
2.
Goldberg SB: Family tasks and reactions in the crisis of death. Social Casework July 1973:398-405.
3.
Figley CR, McCubbin HI: Stress and the family volume II: Coping with catastrophe. New York, Brunner/Mazel, 1983.
Hall JE, Kirschling JM: A conceptual framework for caring for families of hospice patients. The Hospice Journal, 1990;6(2):1-27.
6.
Minuchin S, Fishman HC: Family therapy techniques. Cambridge, Harvard University Press, 1981.
7.
Thomas MB: An introduction to marital and family therapy: Counseling toward healthier family systems across the lifespan. New York, McMillan Publishing Co., 1992.
8.
Carter EA, McGoldrick M: The family life cycle: A framework for family therapy. New York, Gardner Press, Inc., 1980.
9.
Walsh F, McGoldrick M (eds): Living beyond loss. New York, W.W. Norton & Co., 1991.
