Coping strategies used in residential hospice settings: findings from a national study

The purpose of this study was to explore professional caregivers' coping strategies for dealing with the deaths of patients in residential hospices in the United States. Using the Guide to the Nation's Hospices, 1996-97, purely residential hospices were identified and invited to participate in the study. Employees at each residential hospice were asked to complete the Ways of Coping Questionnaire. Results indicated that positive reappraisal coping was the most frequently used coping strategy. Employees dissatisfied with the coping experience reported greater use of confrontive coping, escape-avoidance coping, and accepting responsibility strategies. The findings suggest that in-service training related to coping strategies and environmental interventions may help in strengthening the coping responses of residential hospice staff.