Barney Glaser And Strauss Awareness Context

Death has never been a subject that is easily discussed, or even easily accepted. However, Barney Glaser and Anselm Strauss, sociologists were able to perform research that would allow them to look a little deeper into the interactions between those who may be dying and their loved ones. The two sociologists developed an idea called, Awareness Context and defined it as, “what each interacting person knows of the patient's defined status, along with his recognition of the others’ awareness of his own definition … awareness context … is the context within which these people interact while taking cognizance of it” (Timmermans, 2007). In 1965, Glaser and Strauss went to many hospitals in the San Francisco Bay area to assess those patients who were …show more content…
Together, they were able to see the points of dying in relation to understanding the context of their future expectations. While these awareness contexts are often overlooked, if someone were to observe a patient, while in the hospital, diagnosed with terminal cancer, and then their care, they could easily see these stages come to life. Medical staff could use this knowledge in treating their patients that are diagnosed as terminal. The staff could utilize this process in order to provide not only the best medical care, but the best communication they could give a patient and their families. Medical staff, need not to be afraid of being truthful to dying patients, but rather be open and realistic of their prognoses. By doing this, families, friends and the patient are provided the time and the perspective to make arrangements, mend relationships, allocate financial necessities, spend quality time with loved ones, process the information that was told and so much more. As it was stated, “Compared with people in closed awareness, people dying in full awareness are more able to plan their dying careers, so that they and their respondents are more satisfied with the degree of choice over the place of death, they are less likely to die alone, and are more likely to die in their own homes. Additionally, these individuals are more likely to have spoken of their wishes for euthanasia, another indicator of their desire to control the manner and timing of death” (Seale, Addington-Hall, & McCarthy, 1997). Open awareness is valuable to both the patient and the staff. It alleviates the pressure to hide or tip toe around their prognosis, and it allows room for clear and considerate