Articles: palliative-care.
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Review Meta Analysis
[Integration of palliative care into intensive care : Systematic review].
One of the prime aims of intensive care is to cure patients or at least to extend life duration, sometimes to the extent of losing quality of life. Palliative care aims to improve the quality of life of patients with life-limiting conditions; however, some patients need both intensive and palliative care. About 5-10% of all deaths in Germany and 20% of all deaths in the USA occur in an intensive care unit (ICU) and many of those as well as other patients may benefit from palliative care consultation. Palliative care consultations are increasingly available for intensive care patients but are still infrequently used. ⋯ Trigger factors can reduce barriers which hold back the integration of palliative care in ICUs. Early integration of palliative care can improve quality of care by offering psychological support to patients and their families and by providing collegial consultation. An ongoing prospective study is investigating the acceptance of trigger factors in the daily routine among ICU physicians in Germany.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Sep 2017
Review Meta AnalysisThe effect of communication skills training for generalist palliative care providers on patient-reported outcomes and clinician behaviours: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
As most end-of-life care is provided by health care providers who are generalists rather than specialists in palliative care, effective communication skills training for generalists is essential. ⋯ CRD42014014777.
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Review Meta Analysis
How accurate is the 'Surprise Question' at identifying patients at the end of life? A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Clinicians are inaccurate at predicting survival. The 'Surprise Question' (SQ) is a screening tool that aims to identify people nearing the end of life. Potentially, its routine use could help identify patients who might benefit from palliative care services. The objective was to assess the accuracy of the SQ by time scale, clinician, and speciality. ⋯ There was a wide degree of accuracy, from poor to reasonable, reported across studies using the SQ. Further work investigating how the SQ could be used alongside other prognostic tools to increase the identification of people who would benefit from palliative care is warranted.
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Cochrane Db Syst Rev · Jul 2017
Review Meta AnalysisPsychosocial interventions for fatigue during cancer treatment with palliative intent.
Fatigue is a prevalent and burdensome symptom for patients with incurable cancer receiving cancer treatment with palliative intent and is associated with reduced quality of life. Psychosocial interventions seem promising for management of fatigue among cancer patients. ⋯ We found little evidence around the benefits of psychosocial interventions provided to reduce fatigue in adult patients with incurable cancer receiving cancer treatment with palliative intent. Additional studies with larger samples are required to assess whether psychosocial interventions are beneficial for addressing fatigue in patients with incurable cancer.
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Review Meta Analysis
Effect of specialist palliative care services on quality of life in adults with advanced incurable illness in hospital, hospice, or community settings: systematic review and meta-analysis.
Objective To assess the effect of specialist palliative care on quality of life and additional outcomes relevant to patients in those with advanced illness. Design Systematic review with meta-analysis. Data sources Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PsycINFO, and trial registers searched up to July 2016. ⋯ Conclusions Specialist palliative care was associated with a small effect on QoL and might have most pronounced effects for patients with cancer who received such care early. It could be most effective if it is provided early and if it identifies though screening those patients with unmet needs. Systematic review registration PROSPERO CRD42015020674.