Journal of pain and symptom management
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J Pain Symptom Manage · May 2015
Review Meta Analysis Comparative StudyMeasuring Experience With End-of-Life Care: A Systematic Literature Review.
Increasing interest in end-of-life care has resulted in many tools to measure the quality of care. An important outcome measure of end-of-life care is the family members' or caregivers' experiences of care. ⋯ This review identified several comprehensive surveys aimed at measuring the experiences of end-of-life care, covering a variety of content areas and practical issues for survey administration. Future work should focus on standardizing surveys and administration methods so that experiences of care can be reliably measured and compared across care settings.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · May 2015
Independent validation of the modified prognosis palliative care study predictor models in three palliative care settings.
Accurate prognostic information in palliative care settings is needed for patients to make decisions and set goals and priorities. The Prognosis Palliative Care Study (PiPS) predictor models were presented in 2011, but have not yet been fully validated by other research teams. ⋯ The modified PiPS was successfully validated and can be useful in palliative care units, hospital-based palliative care teams, and home-based palliative care services.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · May 2015
Observational StudyFrequency and factors associated with unexpected death in an acute palliative care unit: expect the unexpected.
Few studies have examined the frequency of unexpected death and its associated factors in a palliative care setting. ⋯ Unexpected death occurred in an unexpectedly high proportion of patients in the APCU setting and was associated with fewer signs of impending death. Our findings highlight the need for palliative care teams to be prepared for the unexpected.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · May 2015
Teaching colleagues how to discuss prognosis as part of a hospital-wide quality improvement project: the positive impact of a 90-minute workshop.
Many physicians have difficulty with discussions about prognosis. The aims of this study were to evaluate why physicians struggle to discuss prognosis and to measure the effect of a 90-minute communication workshop on self-reported skill. ⋯ A short workshop on discussing prognosis was highly valued by physicians from diverse specialties and a majority reported using at least one of the communication skills learned.