Journal of pain and symptom management
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Jun 2012
The prevalence of bowel problems reported in a palliative care population.
Constipation and other disturbances of bowel function are distressing problems for people with specialist palliative care needs. Recent observations suggest that such problems may worsen as people become more unwell, but the changes in intensity over time are not well documented. ⋯ In conclusion, disturbed bowel function consistently remains a problem for people under the care of palliative care services, with the proportion of people with severe problems increasing as death approaches. This is despite the time and number of interventions currently used to palliate these problems.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Jun 2012
Meta AnalysisKey characteristics of palliative care studies reported in the specialized literature.
Although research activity in palliative care is rapidly increasing, the composition of published studies--in terms of significant research characteristics--has not yet been well described. ⋯ Although there is a broad range of research undertaken in palliative care, few studies generate high-level evidence, with data showing a relative lack of funding for hospice and palliative care studies.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Jun 2012
Randomized Controlled TrialExperiences with advanced cancer among Latinas in a public health care system.
Cultural dimensions related to illness are triggered at significant times in an illness trajectory, such as at illness onset or when death approaches. These factors influence views on how illness is understood and managed, which is likely more difficult for minority populations. Although Latinos experience barriers to high-quality health care, late-stage cancer diagnoses, and poor health outcomes, little is known about their experiences with advanced, life-threatening cancers. ⋯ Providers need to become culturally sensitive to the needs of underserved Latinas. Denial or ignorance of these issues can create other problems, such as gaps in patient-centered decision making from diagnosis through the end of life.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Jun 2012
ReviewWhat can we learn about the spiritual needs of palliative care patients from the research literature?
Spirituality is a distinctive subject within palliative care practice and literature, but research to date is relatively undeveloped in this field and studies often throw more light on conceptual and methodological issues than producing reliable data for clinical practice. ⋯ Relevant accounts of what spirituality means for palliative care patients and evidence of how it operates in the lives of people with life-limiting disease can be derived from research. Studies to date are limited by reductive representations of spirituality and the conduct of research by health professionals within health care communities demarcated from disciplines and interpretive traditions of spirituality.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Jun 2012
Clinical TrialPhysical activity monitoring: a responsive and meaningful patient-centered outcome for surgery, chemotherapy, or radiotherapy?
In surgical and clinical oncology, there is a growing need for patient-centered outcomes that are responsive, meaningful, and fit for purpose. ⋯ Objective PA scores correlate significantly with disease stage, functional status, and QoL of patients with cancer. Therefore, activity monitoring can make meaningful objective estimates of patient function in response to cancer and its treatment and may provide surrogate outcomes of QoL.