Palliative care: promoting the concept of a healthy death

The thought of having a life-limiting disease and/or dying can be a fearful prospect. However, a positive approach to palliative care can help the individual and his/her family to approach the last stages of life with hope and, for some people, fulfilment. This article explores a positive health promotion approach to palliative care. This approach is underpinned by the principles of the Ottawa Charter (World Health Organization (WHO), 1986) which specifies advocacy, enabling, and mediacy as the three central elements of health promotion. The nurse as patient advocate can help to ensure that the wishes of the dying person are met. The principles of enabling can help the dying person and his/her family to remain involved in key decisions while mediacy between caregivers can ensure that death occurs in the most appropriate setting for the individual. Through this approach nurses can play a pivotal role in the multidisciplinary team both as agents of change and as providers of care and support to the dying person and his/her family.