Critical care clinics
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Critical care clinics · Jul 2004
ReviewPalliative care in the intensive care unit: barriers, advances, and unmet needs.
The concept that critical illness and terminal illness are necessarily distinct entities has given way to the understanding that they often exist on the same spectrum. Consequently, there is growing consensus that palliative treatment must coexist with attempts at restorative treatment in the intensive care unit (ICU). Palliative care in the ICU has evolved from a relatively one-dimensional construct of terminal sedation in dying patients to a multidisciplinary field addressing symptom control, physician-patient-family communication,spiritual needs, and the needs of health care providers. As ongoing research efforts yield new insights, our ability to practice evidence-based palliative care in the ICU will grow, and new avenues for improvement will become evident.
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There are certainly many coping behaviors that may assist ICU caregivers in the process of caring for themselves. Staff support groups,regular interdisciplinary meetings to discuss difficult cases,and bringing trained personnel into the intensive care unit (ICU)environment to offer staff training in communication and conflict resolution skills have been suggested as methods for alleviating caregiver stress. ⋯ Over the next years, as the population ages, and as technologic advances continue, the critical care units will play an even more prominent role in health care. Given the threat posed by the severe nursing shortage, it becomes apparent that, to prepare for this increased need for critical care services, efforts must be directed to identify the sources of distress for ICU caregivers and develop focused training programs that alleviate the inevitably strains and pressures that arise in the process of compassionate caring for the critically ill.
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Critical care clinics · Jul 2004
ReviewThe dying patient in the ICU: role of the interdisciplinary team.
Expert opinion supports the application of broad interdisciplinary team approaches to the care of the dying patient in the intensive care unit (ICU). Current literature contains many suggestions about how core team members-physicians, nurses, and patients/family members-could systematically enhance interdisciplinary collaboration in the care of the dying patient. ⋯ In addition, ethics consultants and interdisciplinary palliative care teams, working with the core team members, have improved care for the dying. Further studies are needed to document alternative interdisciplinary models for achieving improved and durable patient, family,and provider outcomes in the care of the dying ICU patient.
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Critically ill patients nearing the end of life frequently present with needs for aggressive sedation and analgesia. Optimizing patient comfort while permitting effective communication are challenging goals in this patient population. This article discusses delirium and sedation as it applies to dying patients, and provides recommendations for effective management strategies to optimize the experience of such patients at the end of life.
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Critical care clinics · Jul 2004
ReviewEthics and palliative care consultation in the intensive care unit.
It is clear that ethics and palliative care consultation have, in our view, much to offer intensivists as they attempt to work through the very complex and often tragic cases they face in their daily practice. Potential strengths include clarification of tangled normative issues, facilitation of shared decision making, conflict resolution,and expertise in the provision of comfort care. ⋯ It is our hope that we have helped to clarify appropriate roles for ethics and palliative care in the intensive care unit. We urge the continued development of quality ethics and palliative care services, and the use of those services by intensivists.