Death Anxiety Theory

Throughout history attitudes about death have changed tremendously and continue to do so, although in different nations and cultures these attitudes may vary. With advanced medical technology the ability to post pone death has become more prevalent. Because of these advancements segregation occurs within hospitals and perhaps residential care settings. Segregation meaning separating the dying and the living in the aforementioned places. In doing this the thought of death and dying is removed from the minds of people which in turn leads to the denial and avoidance of death. Emergency healthcare personnel are constantly reminded of death, dying, human fragility and their own mortality, however as a result, these workers are more susceptible …show more content…
Emergency healthcare workers may have a sense of understanding about death, for example losing a family member, as does the rest of the general public, but they also endure existential slaps which are unique to their work setting, thus making them especially susceptible to death anxiety (Routledge & Juhl, 2010). The emergency healthcare workers physical and mental health, interactions with patients, and multiple absences are some effects which may be caused by death anxiety. However, even knowing these potential harmful effects are possible there is a minute amount of research into death anxiety, specifically among emergency healthcare workers. The purpose of this paper is to describe the theory of death anxiety and why emergency nurses may be at a higher risk for death anxiety. It will further describe how healthcare providers, hospital staff and employers can recognize the signs and symptoms of death anxiety, and help to alleviate its effects. With no true clear definition of death anxiety recognition and diagnosis can be quite perplexing. Hence the importance for healthcare staff, especially emergency healthcare workers, to understand the possible causes so that the risk of developing the condition can be assessed and its signs and …show more content…
However tantamount the signs and symptoms are with other anxiety disorders, the signs and symptoms of thanatophobia are thought to be different from the signs and symptoms of general anxiety. Sliter (2014) makes the suggestion that the overlap of symptoms are only moderate in comparison. More common signs and symptoms of ‘thanatophobia’ are listed in the table (See appendix B). In the immediate aftermath of traumatic incidents in the community or emergency departments (EDs) a debriefing should be accomplished. It is there where recognition of these signs and symptoms should take place. Even though studies of death anxiety among healthcare professionals who work in such areas as cancer and end of life care have been done, there is a scarcity of research into death anxiety among emergency healthcare workers. Peters (2013) and Sliter (2014) suggest that emergency healthcare workers are more susceptible to death anxiety. Therefore the lack of research places more responsibility on healthcare providers, hospital staff and employers to identify these risks and hopefully prevent