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Background: Palliative care is an important branch of nursing care. Patients with end-stage renal disease, owing to the chronic nature of the disease, will require palliative care, with nursing staff being responsible for delivering these services. Understanding the priorities of this type of care from the perspective of patients and nursing staff can be helpful in delivering it effectively and efficiently. This study was conducted to determine and compare palliative care priorities from the perspectives of patients and nursing staff in a haemodialysis ward in Iran., Method: This research is a cross-sectional and descriptive-analytic study with a sample size equal to the research population (322 patients and 45 nursing staff) in a haemodialysis ward in Kerman, Iran. Data were collected using two self-administered questionnaires that included demographic information and palliative care priorities. Data were analysed using SPSS19 with central tendency and dispersion indicators (frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation, Mann-Whitney U-test, Kruskal-Wallis, independent t , ANOVA and one-way ANOVA). The significance level was P <0.05., Results: The mean total score (± standard deviation) of palliative care priorities from the patients' and nurses' perspective was 268.83±3.90 and 271.11±29.76, respectively, which was categorised for both groups as 'high priority'. From the patients' perspective, the highest mean score was obtained from 'supporting patient with insurance concerns', while the lowest mean score was derived from 'managing diarrhoea'. The nurses also believed that 'managing and relief of pain' had the highest priority and 'bloating' had the lowest priority in palliative care. From the perspective of both groups, holistic support and relief of physical disorders had the highest and lowest mean scores, respectively. Further, the mean scores of palliative care priorities did not differ significantly from the perspective of patients and nursing staff in the haemodialysis ward ( P =0.68)., Conclusion: Palliative care is a high priority for both haemodialysis patients and nursing staff and both groups prioritised it similarly. As palliative care has not yet been initiated formally across all treatment centres in Iran, it is necessary to prioritise its inclusion within the renal and haemodialysis wards in Iran and provide further training or education for nurses to ensure they are equipped to deliver effective and informed palliative care.

Background: End of life (EOL) care is newly established in the Iranian context. Context, in this case, refers to the internal and external manifestation of the nurse values, norms and experiences that are learnt throughout life., Aim: The aim of this study was to explore nurses' experiences of caring for dying patients in Iran., Methods: A phenomenological hermeneutic approach, influenced by the philosophy of Ricoeur, was used to analyse 10 oncology nurses' experiences of caring for dying persons., Findings: Three themes emerged from the analysis: 1) seeing the patient as unique person, 2) being present and open to seeing patients as unique persons and 3) personal and professional development as a result of closeness between nurse and patient. Caring for dying persons means assisting them at the end of their lives., Conclusion: Caring relationships underlie professional palliative care and are essential in EOL care. Proper palliative education and professionally led supervision should be included in the Iranian nursing curriculum.

Background: The increasing incidence of multiple sclerosis (MS) over the previous decade in Iran has been examined in the literature. This chronic and unpredictable disease creates psychological impairment, including uncertainty, among patients. It is important to examine the extent of uncertainty experienced by patients with MS and their spiritual wellbeing. It could also be useful to assess the relationship between these two variables., Purpose: This study was conducted to examine the relationship between spiritual wellbeing and uncertainty among MS patients in south-east Iran., Method: The sample in this cross-sectional, descriptive study comprised 200 non-hospitalised patients with MS referred to a disease centre in Kerman (south-east Iran). Using the Mishel Uncertainty in Illness Scale (MUIS-C) and spiritual wellbeing scale (SWB), data were collected and analysed., Results: The study results showed that the total mean score of SWB was 93.81 (SD=15.25). The mean score of the sub-scale of religious wellbeing was greater than the sub-scale of existential wellbeing (50.80 vs 43.01). The mean score of uncertainty scale was 67.20 (12/35). The highest mean score belonged to the sub-category of ambiguity (32.24±7.90). Pearson correlation test showed that perceived uncertainty score negatively correlated with spiritual wellbeing (r=-0.345; p=0.000), existential wellbeing (r=-0.421; p=0/00) and religious wellbeing (r=-0.172; p=0.015)., Conclusion: MS patients should be offered opportunities to reflect on their experiences, feelings, actions and reactions to spirituality to enhance the possibility of using their personal experiences as part of positive and constructive learning. The study results suggest that information about spirituality and spiritual care should be included in the continuous and in-service education of MS patients and nurses working with them.