XVII Glossary
Open Resources for Nursing (Open RN)
Acute grief: Grief that begins immediately after the death of a loved one and includes the separation response and response to stress. (Chapter 17.2)
Advance directives: Legal documents that direct care when the client can no longer speak for themselves, including the living will and the health care power of attorney. (Chapter 17.2)
Anorexia: Loss of appetite or loss of desire to eat. (Chapter 17.4)
Anticipatory grief: Grief before a loss, associated with diagnosis of an acute, chronic, and/or terminal illness experienced by the client, family, and caregivers. Examples of anticipatory grief include actual or fear of potential loss or health, independence, body part, financial stability, choice, or mental function. (Chapter 17.2)
Bereavement period: The time it takes for the mourner to feel the pain of the loss, mourn, grieve, and adjust to the world without the presence of the deceased. (Chapter 17.2)
Burnout: A caregiver’s diminished caring and cynicism that can be triggered by workplace demands, lack of resources to do work professionally and safely, interpersonal relationship stressors, or work policies that can lead to diminished caring and cynicism. Burnout may be manifested physically and psychologically with a loss of motivation. (Chapter 17.2)
Cachexia: Wasting of muscle and adipose tissue due to lack of nutrition. (Chapter 17.4)
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR): Emergency treatment initiated when a client’s breathing stops or their heart stops beating. It may involve chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth breathing, electric shocks to stop lethal cardiac rhythms, breathing tubes to open the airway, or cardiac medications. (Chapter 17.2)
Comfort care: Care that occurs when the client’s and medical team’s goals shift from curative interventions to symptom control, pain relief, and quality of life. (Chapter 17.2)
Compassion fatigue: A state of chronic and continuous self-sacrifice and/or prolonged exposure to difficult situations that affect a health care professional’s physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. (Chapter 17.2)
Complicated grief: Chronic grief, delayed grief, exaggerated grief, and masked grief are types of complicated grief. (Chapter 17.2)
Disenfranchised grief: Any loss that is not validated or recognized. (Chapter 17.2)
Do-not-resuscitate (DNR) order: A medical order that instructs health care professionals not to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) if a client’s breathing stops or if the client’s heart stops beating. (Chapter 17.2)
Fading away: A transition that families make when they realize their seriously ill family member is dying. (Chapter 17.2)
Grief: The emotional response to a loss, defined as the individualized and personalized feelings and responses that an individual makes to real, perceived, or anticipated loss. (Chapter 17.2)
Health care power of attorney: A legal document that identifies a trusted individual to serve as a decision maker for h