Journal of pain and symptom management
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2021
The possibility of conducting a clinical trial on palliative care: A survey of whether a clinical study on cancer dyspnea is acceptable to cancer patients and their relatives.
Conducting randomized controlled trials on palliative care is difficult owing to barriers like fragility of the patients' health status and health care providers' concerns for patients. However, quality randomized controlled trials are required for care improvement. ⋯ Some patients and relatives were reluctant to participate in clinical trials on cancer dyspnea. Thus, trials need to be minimally invasive, quick, and fully explained to and understood by patients and families.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2021
Clinical TrialPerceptions of Need for Palliative Care in Recently Hospitalized Patients With Systolic Heart Failure.
The symptom burden associated with heart failure (HF) remains high despite improvements in therapy and calls for the integration of palliative care into traditional HF care. Little is also known about how patients with HF perceive palliative care and patient-level characteristics associated with the need for palliative care, which could influence the utilization of palliative care in HF management. ⋯ HF patients' beliefs about palliative care may affect utilization of palliative care. Specific characteristics can help identify patients with HF who may benefit from palliative care involvement. Education targeted towards patients with selected attributes may help incorporate palliative care into HF management.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2021
"Still Caring for the Family": Condolence Expression Training for Pediatric Residents.
Insufficient communication from the medical team following a child's death may compound parental grief. Pediatric residents care for children who die, yet the landscape of condolence expression education within residency programs has not been studied. ⋯ Pediatric residents lack comfort with and training in condolence expression and desire education to address these gaps. These findings should inform development and investigation of educational resources and training opportunities for residents to learn and practice compassionate provision of condolences to grieving families.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2021
Observational StudyEnd-of-life planning depends on socio-economic and racial background: Evidence from the US Health and Retirement Study (HRS).
Americans express a strong preference for participating in decisions regarding their medical care, yet they are often unable to participate in decision-making regarding their end-of-life care. ⋯ Understanding differences that increase end-of-life planning is important to incentivize patients' participation. Advance planning should be encouraged and accessible to people of all ages as it is inevitable for the provision of patient-centered and cost-effective care.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2021
Acupuncture as an adjunctive treatment for pain in hospitalized children with sickle cell disease.
Acute episodes of pain associated with sickle cell disease (SCD) account for over 100,000 hospitalizations and expenses of nearly one billion dollars annually in the U.S. New treatment approaches are needed as the current opioid based therapy is often inadequate in controlling pain, resulting in prolonged inpatient stays, and high rates of readmission. ⋯ Acupuncture was broadly accepted and well-tolerated in our study population. Acupuncture treatment was associated with a statistically significant and clinically meaningful reduction in pain scores immediately following the treatments, and a trend towards a reduction in length of stay and readmission for pain.