Death is a frequent visitor to the intensive care unit; patients in this area are at the peak of their illness, many of them are non-verbal. In addition to understanding how to communicate with patients, you may also have to accept the fact that the case may be medically futile and all you can do is make the patient as comfortable as possible for the remainder of the stay. Recent news headlines have brought this topic closer to home, often if you are not in the healthcare field or studying to enter the healthcare field you may hear about these topics on television or radio but they do not take place in your consciousness. thoughts. Hearing about Brittany Maynard made me stop and wonder what I would do, if I were in her shoes, or if I were a nurse in the hospital treating her, and the answer is, I don't know. Ethical dilemmas like this are complicated and there is often no black and white answer, we live in gray areas, it's about finding what is right for that patient and being able to accept the fact that their beliefs may not be the same like yours