Tidying rooms and tending hearts: An explorative, mixed-methods study of hospital cleaning staff’s experiences with seriously ill and dying patients

Jors, Karin; Tietgen, Svenja; Xander, Carola; Momm, Felix; Becker, Gerhild

doi:10.1177/0269216316648071

Cited by 18 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Key practices/actions were identified which mapped onto each of the five key formal rehabilitative domains defined and delivered by clinical rehabilitative professionals: Cognition, physical function, occupation, communication, behaviour/sociability. The findings presented here explore how the work of hotel service staff and their interactions with patients fit each of these domains and echo the findings summarised about relational care in the work of Müller, Armstrong and Lowndes, 2018;Jors et al, 2017;and Schulman-Green et al, 2005.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 64%

“…The role they play in infection control is widely acknowledged (Dancer, 1999;Wu et al, 2005), with the relational role cleaning staff also play in care slowly being recognised. For example, Jors et al (2017), examined how cleaning staff on palliative care wards interact with seriously ill and dying patients, and Schulman-Green et al (2005) explored the role cleaners and reception staff play in the care of cancer patients in pain. Both describe how the informality of a cleaners' role enables patients to express emotions about their condition/situation to them.…”

Section: Hotel Service Staff Working In Care Settingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Caring Relations at the Margins of Neurological Care Home Life: The Role of ‘Hotel Service’ Staff in Brain Injury Rehabilitation

Latchem-Hastings

2021

Journal of Long Term Care

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Acquired brain injury rehabilitation Acquired brain injuries (ABI) can result in catastrophic impairments that are life changing. Often affecting previously healthy individuals, ABI is one of the leading causes of death and disability in younger adults (aged under 40) in the western world (Maas, Stocchetti and Bullock, 2008). Injuries are caused by incidents such as road traffic accidents, falls, sporting injuries or assaults (Kraus and McArthur, 2006), cerebral vascular events such as stroke (infarct or haemorrhage), hypoxia, encephalitis or viral infection (Owen, 2008). Once physiologically stabilized, brain injury survivors enter a rehabilitative period. Although not all patients receive it, at the centre of brain injury rehabilitation (and neurological rehabilitation more broadly) is assessment and treatment by a multidisciplinary or specialist team (Wressle et al., 1999; Turner-Stokes et al., 2005; Wade, 2015). Those considered core to this team are consultant physicians, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists, clinical psychologists, rehabilitation assistants, and social workers

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 64%

Section: Hotel Service Staff Working In Care Settingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Caring Relations at the Margins of Neurological Care Home Life: The Role of ‘Hotel Service’ Staff in Brain Injury Rehabilitation

Latchem-Hastings

2021

Journal of Long Term Care

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“…The relationship between volunteers and the healthcare team was not always clear, leading to lack of role clarity for volunteers. The need to feel included and to belong to a team, 46 and to feel that one's work is viewed as important 47 was key to volunteers and contributes to positive perceptions of their role and work environment. 46 Feeling included fosters positive outcomes, 16,48 leads to positive attitudes and behaviours, such as altruism, affective commitment and task performance 49 and contributes to a sense of belonging, feeling appreciated and a sense of control.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘It’s not what they were expecting’: A systematic review and narrative synthesis of the role and experience of the hospital palliative care volunteer

Bloomer

Walshe

2020

Palliat Med

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Background: Volunteers make a major contribution to palliative care but little is known specifically about hospital palliative care volunteers. Aim: The aim of this study was to understand the role and experience of hospital palliative care volunteers. Design: Systematic review and narrative synthesis. Data sources: CINAHL, Embase, Medline, PsycINFO, PubMed and three dissertation databases were searched from inception to June 2019. A forward and backward search of included papers in key journals was also undertaken. Records were independently assessed against inclusion criteria by authors. Included papers were assessed for quality, but none were excluded. Results: In total, 14 papers were included. Hospital palliative care volunteers were mostly female, aged above 40 years, and training varied considerably. Volunteers faced unique challenges in supporting dying patients due to the nature of hospital care, rapid patient turnover and the once-off nature of support. Volunteer roles were diverse, with some providing hands-on care, but most focused on 'being with' the dying patient. Volunteers were appreciated for providing psychosocial support, seen as complementary to, rather than replacing the work of health professionals. Given volunteers were often required to work across multiple wards, establishing positive work relationships with health professionals was challenging. Divergent views about whether the volunteer was part of or external to the team impacted volunteers' experience and perceptions of the value of their contribution. Conclusion: Hospital palliative care volunteers face unique challenges in supporting terminally ill patients. Volunteer support in hospital settings is possible and appropriate, if sufficient support is available to mitigate the challenges associated with complex, high-acuity care. What is already known about the topic?• • The demand for palliative care and hospice services worldwide is increasing, as a result of an ageing population and rising rates of chronic illness. • • Volunteers are known for their positive contribution to hospice and palliative care services worldwide.• • Volunteers have traditionally provided support in administrative and patient-related roles across a variety of settings, including at home, in stand-alone hospices and specialist palliative care units, and through palliative care services and organisations.Palliative Medicine 34 (5)

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“…This research adds to an understanding of the importance both of person-centred responsive care, and that this need not be always professionally provided to have impact. People towards the end of life respond to those who pay attention to need, whether that be, for example, conversations with cleaning staff [ 46 ] or the responsiveness of someone unfamiliar with their care needs [ 36 ]. What may be distinctively different about the responsiveness of volunteers in both ‘being there’ and ‘doing for’ is that people also responded to the altruism inherent in the volunteer role, in contrast to the roles of professional care providers.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘Being with’ or ‘doing for’? How the role of an end-of-life volunteer befriender can impact patient wellbeing: interviews from a multiple qualitative case study (ELSA)

Dodd

Hill²,

Ockenden³

et al. 2018

Support Care Cancer

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PurposeTo explore the perspectives of people anticipated to be in their last year of life, family carers, volunteers and staff on the impacts of receiving a volunteer-provided befriending service. Patient participants received up to 12 weeks of a volunteer-provided befriending intervention. Typically, this involved one visit per week from a trained volunteer. Such services complement usual care and are hoped to enhance quality of life.MethodsMultiple case study design (n = 8). Cases were end-of-life befriending services in home and community settings including UK-based hospices (n = 6), an acute hospital (n = 1) and a charity providing support to those with substance abuse issues (n = 1). Data collection incorporated qualitative thematic interviews, observation and documentary analysis. Framework analysis facilitated within and across case pattern matching.ResultsEighty-four people participated across eight sites (cases), including patients (n = 23), carers (n = 3), volunteers (n = 24) and staff (n = 34). Interview data are reported here. Two main forms of input were described—‘being there’ and ‘doing for’. ‘Being there’ encapsulated the importance of companionship and the relational dynamic between volunteer and patient. ‘Doing for’ described the process of meeting social needs such as being able to leave the house with the volunteer. These had impacts on wellbeing with people describing feeling less lonely, isolated, depressed and/or anxious.ConclusionImpacts from volunteer befriending or neighbour services may be achieved through volunteers taking a more practical/goal-based orientation to their role and/or taking a more relational and emotional orientation. Training of volunteers must equip them to be aware of these differing elements of the role and sensitive to when they may create most impact.Trial RegistrationISRCTN12929812

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Tidying rooms and tending hearts: An explorative, mixed-methods study of hospital cleaning staff’s experiences with seriously ill and dying patients

Cited by 18 publications

References 10 publications

Caring Relations at the Margins of Neurological Care Home Life: The Role of ‘Hotel Service’ Staff in Brain Injury Rehabilitation

Caring Relations at the Margins of Neurological Care Home Life: The Role of ‘Hotel Service’ Staff in Brain Injury Rehabilitation

‘It’s not what they were expecting’: A systematic review and narrative synthesis of the role and experience of the hospital palliative care volunteer

‘Being with’ or ‘doing for’? How the role of an end-of-life volunteer befriender can impact patient wellbeing: interviews from a multiple qualitative case study (ELSA)

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