Journal of pain and symptom management
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Long-term daily administration of aprepitant for the management of intractable nausea and vomiting in children with life-limiting conditions: a case series.
Nausea and vomiting is a common symptom in children through their end of life journey. Aprepitant, a NK-1 antagonist, has become a potent weapon in the fight against chemo-induced nausea and vomiting. However, its use in palliative care for refractory nausea and vomiting has been limited due to limited experience or evidence of continuous use. Emerging evidence suggests that continuous use is not only safe, but also effective in patients with nausea and vomiting refractory to multiple lines of antiemetic therapy. ⋯ Our review suggests a role for aprepitant in management of refractory nausea and vomiting, demonstrating safety and efficacy. This case series is the first report of aprepitant use in this manner in the paediatric palliative care setting.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Validation of the Chinese Version of the Quality of Dying and Death Questionnaire for Family Members of ICU Patients.
The quality of end-of-life care services directly affects the end-of-life quality of life of patients and their families. At present, there are no standard tools in China for assessing the quality of dying and death (QODD) of critical intensive care unit (ICU) patients. ⋯ The Chinese version of the QODD questionnaire for family members of ICU patients is a reliable and effective instrument for evaluating the quality of death among patients who die in the ICU and can be applied to clinical practice and research.
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Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) first emerged in China in December 2019 and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020. Clinicians around the world looked to cities that first experienced major surges to inform their preparations to prevent and manage the impact the pandemic would bring to their patients and health care systems. Although this information provided insight into how COVID-19 could affect the Canadian palliative care system, it remained unclear what to expect. ⋯ Despite warnings of increased clinical loads, as well as widespread shortages of staff, personal protection equipment, medications, and inpatient beds, the calls to action by international colleagues to support the palliative care needs of patients with COVID-19 were not realized in Toronto. This article explores the effects of the pandemic on Toronto's palliative care planning and reports of clinical load and capacity, beds, staffing and redeployment, and medication and PPE shortages. The Toronto palliative care experience illustrates the international need for strategies to ensure the integration of palliative care into COVID-19 management, and to optimize the use of palliative care systems during the pandemic.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Observational StudyThe challenges of caring for people dying from COVID-19: a multinational, observational study (CovPall).
Systematic data on the care of people dying with COVID-19 are scarce. ⋯ Palliative care services were often overwhelmed, yet felt ignored in the COVID-19 response. Palliative care needs better integration with health care systems when planning and responding to future epidemics/pandemics.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2021
Factors Affecting Recruitment and Participation of Bereaved Parents in Research: A Brief Report.
Inclusion of bereaved parents in survey-based research is essential to improving end-of-life care for children and their families. However, racial and ethnic minorities are vastly underrepresented in these studies. ⋯ To ensure optimal end-of-life care for children, all parental voices should be heard. Recruitment of racial/ethnic minorities in bereaved parent survey-based studies can be improved by focusing on specific factors that are associated with parental survey completion.