Palliative medicine
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Palliative medicine · May 2001
ReviewMainstreaming palliative care for cancer patients in the acute hospital setting.
Palliative care is now emerging as an integrated part of mainstream health care delivery. The importance of patient choice regarding place of dying means that a substantial proportion of palliative care provision occurs in community settings. In part, this is due to the inappropriateness of the acute hospital setting for the care of dying patients. ⋯ Therefore, there remains a need for skilled and compassionate provision for the care of dying patients in the acute hospital setting. This paper presents a case for the provision of palliative care services in teaching hospitals. It further argues that a high level of integration between cancer treatment services and palliative care services is needed to optimize the care of cancer patients.