Articles: palliative-care.
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BMC palliative care · Jun 2020
Content validation of the EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL with advanced cancer patients and health care professionals from palliative care services in Chile.
The assessment of patients' quality of life (QOL) is essential when evaluating the outcome of palliative care; however, no instruments have been validated for measuring symptoms and QOL in patients receiving palliative care in Chile. We aimed to investigate the content validity of the EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 15 Palliative Care (QLQ-C15-PAL), replicating the methods used previously to shorten the EORTC Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 (QLQ-C30) for use among patients in palliative care. ⋯ The EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL showed good content validity in the assessment of symptoms and QOL of advanced cancer patients; therefore, we recommend the use of this questionnaire in palliative care in Chile. Dyspnea and constipation items were revised by the EORTC group. More research is needed to add a social dimension for a comprehensive assessment of patients' QOL.
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Scand J Trauma Resus · Jun 2020
Management of decision of withholding and withdrawing life-sustaining treatments in French EDs.
Decisions of withholding or withdrawing life sustaining-treatments in emergency department are part of current practice but the decision-making process remains poorly described in the literature. ⋯ The management of the decision to withhold or withdraw life-sustaining treatments must be improved in emergency departments according to the guidelines. A standard written procedure could be useful in clinical practice despite the lack of experienced difference between centers with and without procedures.
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BMC palliative care · Jun 2020
Supportive and palliative care indicators tool (SPICT™): content validity, feasibility and pre-test of the Italian version.
Difficulties in identifying patients at risk of clinical deterioration or death represent one of the main barriers to Palliative Care (PC) development in the community. Currently, no specific Italian tools aimed at identifying patients with PC needs are available. Of the different European tools available, the SPICT™ can be used easily in any kind of setting and does not include the Surprise Question. The purpose of the study was to translate, cross-culturally adapt and pre-test the Italian version of the SPICT™. ⋯ The SPICT-IT™ demonstrated acceptable content validity. The percentage of patients identified through the SPICT-IT™ was comparable to findings from literature. The next phase of this project will investigate the impact of a proactive training programme aimed at supporting GPs in identifying patients with PC needs and delivering appropriate Primary Palliative Care (PPC).
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Jun 2020
ReviewThe relationship of palliative care with assisted dying where assisted dying is lawful: A systematic scoping review of the literature.
A central approach of palliative care has been to provide holistic care for people who are dying, terminally ill, or facing life-limiting illnesses while neither hastening nor postponing death. Assisted dying laws allow eligible individuals to receive medically administered or self-administered medication from a health provider to end their life. The implementation of these laws in a growing number of jurisdictions therefore poses certain challenges for palliative care. ⋯ The studies in this review cast only partial light on challenges faced by palliative care when assisted dying is legal. There is pressing need for more research on the involvement of palliative care in the developing practices of assisted dying, across a growing number of jurisdictions.