Introduction:

1. What is your name?
Ksate Alabangane

2. Which hospice do you work for?
Hospice Wits

3. What do you do there?
Nursing

4. How long have you been there?
19 years

In-depth:

1. Why did you decide to focus on palliative care?
Nursing terminal ill patients. I decided to focus because of my love of nursing and patients.

2. What gives you the greatest fulfilment?
Nursing terminal patients.

3. What do you find the most challenging?
Nursing a patient with difficult families.

4. What do you think people find the most challenging about a life-threatening diagnosis?
Denial.

5. What do you think that you personally bring to your job that reflects who you are as a person?
I am a caring and hard worker.

6. How do you take care of your own health and balance?
Praying and a check-up every year.

7. What is your advice to anyone else wishing to join your profession?
To be a hard worker and to love working with patients.

8. What is your advice to anyone given a life-threatening diagnosis?
My advice is to get counselling.

9. What is your advice to the loved ones of anyone who is given a life-threatening diagnosis?
To love and be patient and get counselling for the patient.

10. How do your loved ones feel about the work that you do?
My loved ones feel that I’m doing a great job, but a difficult one.

11. What do you like the most about the hospice that you work with?
Good nursing and team work.