Articles: palliative-care.
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2018
Meta AnalysisBarriers and facilitators influencing death at home: A meta-ethnography.
In many countries, achieving a home death represents a successful outcome from both a patient welfare and commissioning viewpoint. Significant variation exists in the proportion of home deaths achieved internationally, with many countries unable to meet the wishes of a large number of patients. This review builds on previous literature investigating factors influencing home death, synthesising qualitative research to supplement evidence that quantitative research in this field may have been unable to reach. ⋯ Future policies and clinical practice should develop measures to empower informal carers as well as emphasise earlier commencement of advance care planning. Best practice discharge should be recommended in addition to addressing remaining inequity to enable non-cancer patients greater access to palliative care services.
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Review Meta Analysis
The nurse's role in palliative care: A qualitative meta-synthesis.
To explore how nurses, across various health systems, describe their role in providing palliative care for patients with life-threatening illnesses. ⋯ Nurses need knowledge and training, guidance and support to fulfil their role.
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Palliative medicine · Jan 2018
Review Meta AnalysisSilence as an element of care: A meta-ethnographic review of professional caregivers' experience in clinical and pastoral settings.
In interactions between professional caregivers, patients and family members at the end of life, silence often becomes more prevalent. Silence is acknowledged as integral to interpersonal communication and compassionate care but is also noted as a complex and ambiguous phenomenon. This review seeks interdisciplinary experience to deepen understanding of qualities of silence as an element of care. ⋯ Experience of silence as an element of care was found in palliative and spiritual care, psychotherapy and counselling supporting existing recognition of the value of silence as a skill and practice. Because silence can present challenges for caregivers, greater understanding may offer benefits for clinical practice.
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Palliative medicine · Dec 2017
Review Meta AnalysisThe effects of life review interventions on spiritual well-being, psychological distress, and quality of life in patients with terminal or advanced cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Life review interventions have been used to alleviate psycho-spiritual distress in people near the end of life. However, their effectiveness remains inconclusive. ⋯ Therapeutic life review is potentially beneficial for people near the end of life. However, the results should be interpreted with caution due to the limited number of randomized controlled trials and associated methodological weaknesses. Further rigorously designed randomized controlled trials are warranted.
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Palliative medicine · Dec 2017
Review Meta AnalysisRural end-of-life care from the experiences and perspectives of patients and family caregivers: A systematic literature review.
End-of-life care must be relevant to the dying person and their family caregiver regardless of where they live. Rural areas are distinct and need special consideration. Gaining end-of-life care experiences and perspectives of rural patients and their family caregivers is needed to ensure optimal rural care. ⋯ Articulation of the rural voice is increasing; however, there still remain limited published rural studies reporting on patient and family caregivers' experiences and perspectives on rural end-of-life care. Further research is encouraged, especially through national and international collaborative work.