Palliative medicine
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2016
Posttraumatic stress symptoms in palliative care professionals seeking mindfulness training: Prevalence and vulnerability.
Vicarious exposure to trauma is ubiquitous in palliative medicine. Repeated exposure to trauma may contribute to compassion fatigue and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms in medical and supportive care professionals such as physicians, nurses, and social workers. These symptoms may be intensified among medical and supportive care professionals who use avoidant or rigid coping strategies. ⋯ Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms may be common among professionals working in palliative medicine. Professionals prone to avoidant coping and those with more rigid negative thought processes may be at higher risk for posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms.
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2016
Effect of palliative care nurse champions on the quality of dying in the hospital according to bereaved relatives: A controlled before-and-after study.
To improve the quality of end-of-life care, hospitals increasingly appoint palliative care nurse champions. ⋯ Performing a complex intervention study in palliative care proved to be feasible. This study showed no differences in the experiences of bereaved relatives after introduction of nurse champions. The complexity of palliative care in the hospital might require more intensive and longer training of nurse champions.
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2016
The transformation process for palliative care professionals: The metamorphosis, a qualitative research study.
Palliative care professionals are exposed daily to high levels of suffering. This makes them particularly vulnerable to suffering from stress, which can lead to burnout and/or compassion fatigue. ⋯ During their professional activity, palliative care professionals go through a series of phases, depending on the relationship between the cost of caring and the satisfaction of caring, which can influence both the care provided to patients and families and their own personal circumstances. Being aware of this risk, and implementing self-care strategies, can protect professionals and enable them to conduct their work in an optimal manner. Reflecting on the experiences of these professionals could be useful for other health professionals.