Institutional geographies in dying: Nurses’ actions and observations on dying spaces inside and outside intensive care units

This paper articulates the geographies associated with intensive care nursing work with dying patients and their families. Six focus groups were conducted with 27 registered critical care nurses who practice in hospitals in a mid-western city in the United States. The analysis is structured by three emerging themes (i) the importance of a ‘good’ and ‘sacred’ place, (ii) the body as mapped by medical specialties, and (iii) problems with procedurally driven suspension of ‘do not resuscitate’ orders beyond intensive care units (ICUs). Recommendations describe the need for institutional recognition of the moral importance of strong relationships between nurses, clients, and their families, and nurses’ wide-ranging roles in bridging the various spatial domains of intensive care.