Palliative medicine
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Palliative medicine · May 2021
Trends of concerns from diagnosis in patients with advanced lung cancer and their family caregivers: A 2-year longitudinal study.
Both advanced cancer patients and their family caregivers experience distress and have a range of concerns after cancer diagnosis. However, longitudinal studies on this topic have been lacking. ⋯ The majority of advanced lung cancer patients and their family caregivers have serious concerns from diagnosis, which is associated with their psychological distress. The spectrum of concerns alters over the disease trajectory, warranting efficient tailored care and support for both groups immediately after diagnosis.
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Palliative medicine · May 2021
'Necessity is the mother of invention': Specialist palliative care service innovation and practice change in response to COVID-19. Results from a multinational survey (CovPall).
Specialist palliative care services have a key role in a whole system response to COVID-19, a disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. There is a need to understand service response to share good practice and prepare for future care. ⋯ Specialist palliative care services have been flexible, highly adaptive and have adopted low-cost solutions, also called 'frugal innovations', in response to COVID-19. In addition to financial support, greater collaboration is essential to minimise duplication of effort and optimise resource use.ISRCTN16561225 https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN16561225.
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Palliative medicine · May 2021
Willingness and concerns of transfusion-dependent hematological patients toward the option of home transfusion therapy.
One of the main obstacles of providing home-based palliative care to transfusion-dependent hematology patients is the lack of home transfusions services. While healthcare professionals are concerned with safety and cost of home transfusions, the attitude of the patients toward home transfusions are mostly unknown. ⋯ These data suggest that a significant portion of transfusion-dependent patients in Israel view home transfusions as a preferred treatment option and that its successful implementation requires maintaining ongoing contact with the treating hospital.
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Palliative medicine · May 2021
Hearing the voices of children diagnosed with a life-threatening or life-limiting illness and their parents' accounts in a palliative care setting: A qualitative study.
Exploring children's experiences of a life-threatening or life-limiting diagnosis is essential in offering appropriate care for them. There have been few studies examining these and they are often from the parent's perspective. Even if adults are frequently unwilling to share information with children, they become aware of their diagnosis and prognosis. The theory of awareness contexts provided a theoretical framework through which it can be understood what children knew about their condition. ⋯ Children in the study often know more about their condition than their parents realised. Using this understanding, healthcare professionals can advise parents and children about how to communicate with one another which would enable the children to give voice to their thoughts, emotions and experiences.
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Palliative medicine · May 2021
ReviewMissing the human connection: A rapid appraisal of healthcare workers' perceptions and experiences of providing palliative care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
During infectious epidemics, healthcare workers are required to deliver traditional care while facing new pressures. Time and resource restrictions, a focus on saving lives and new safety measures can lead to traditional aspects of care delivery being neglected. ⋯ The COVID-19 pandemic prohibited the delivery of traditional care as practical barriers restricted human connections. Staff prioritised communication and comfort orientated tasks to re-establish compassion at end-of-life and displayed resilience by adjusting their goals.