Assessment of thirst among severely demented patients in the terminal phase of life. Exploratory interviews with ward sisters and enrolled nurses

The dying patients' experience of thirst is an important aspect of his quality of life. The ward sister and an experienced enrolled nurse at 30 geriatric wards in the Southern Health Care Region of Sweden were interviewed about their methods of assessing thirst among severely demented patients in the terminal stage of life. The answers could be classified into six categories: a priori opinion; intuition; identification with the patient; amounts of fluids received; the patient's behaviour; and state of hydration. All the reported methods are problematic. There is a need of development of more valid methods.