Journal of pain and symptom management
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialPalliative radiation before hospice: the long and the short of it.
Randomized data support shorter radiotherapy courses for management of cancer-related symptoms in the palliative setting. ⋯ This study found relatively long courses of radiotherapy before short lengths of survival on hospice. Future research is needed to identify barriers to shorter radiotherapy courses.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2014
ReviewExperience of advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: metasynthesis of qualitative research.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a life-limiting illness. Despite best available treatments, individuals continue to experience symptom burden and have high health care utilization. ⋯ Combining discrete qualitative studies provided a useful perspective of the experience of living with COPD over the past two decades. Further studies into the ongoing needs of individuals with COPD are unlikely to add to this well-established picture. Future research should focus on solutions through the development of interventions that address patients' ongoing needs.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2014
Multicenter StudyFamily perceptions of quality of hospice care in the nursing home.
Nursing homes (NHs) are increasingly the site of hospice care. High quality of care is dependent on successful NH-hospice collaboration. ⋯ The important concerns raised by bereaved family members about NH-hospice collaboration have been incorporated into the revised Family Evaluation of Hospice Care, a post-death survey used to evaluate quality of hospice care.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2014
Strategies to support recruitment of patients with life-limiting illness for research: the Palliative Care Research Cooperative Group.
The Palliative Care Research Cooperative Group (PCRC) is the first clinical trials cooperative for palliative care in the U.S. ⋯ The recruitment experience from the multisite PCRC yields new insights into methods for effective recruitment to palliative care clinical trials. These results will inform training materials for the PCRC and may assist other investigators in the field.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2014
Legal barriers in accessing opioid medicines: results of the ATOME quick scan of national legislation of eastern European countries.
Overregulation of controlled medicines is one of the factors contributing to limited access to opioid medicines. ⋯ The selected countries have in common as main barriers prescribing and dispensing restrictions, the use of stigmatizing language, and incorrect use of definitions. The practical impact of these barriers identified using a quick scan method needs to be validated by other means.