Palliative medicine
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Palliative medicine · Sep 2019
A brief, patient- and proxy-reported outcome measure in advanced illness: Validity, reliability and responsiveness of the Integrated Palliative care Outcome Scale (IPOS).
Few measures capture the complex symptoms and concerns of those receiving palliative care. ⋯ The Integrated Palliative care Outcome Scale is a valid and reliable outcome measure, both in patient self-report and staff proxy-report versions. It can assess and monitor symptoms and concerns in advanced illness, determine the impact of healthcare interventions, and demonstrate quality of care. This represents a major step forward internationally for palliative care outcome measurement.
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Palliative medicine · Sep 2019
Communication between healthcare professionals and relatives of patients approaching the end-of-life: A systematic review of qualitative evidence.
Effective communication between healthcare professionals and relatives of patients approaching the end-of-life is vital to ensure patients have a 'good death'. To improve communication, it is important to first identify how this is currently being accomplished. ⋯ Findings suggest training could provide healthcare professionals with these strategies to improve communication. Interventions such as question prompt lists could help relatives overcome barriers to involvement in decision-making. Further research is needed to understand communication with relatives in different settings and with different healthcare professionals.
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Palliative medicine · Sep 2019
Video consultations in palliative care: A systematic integrative review.
There is extensive need for palliative care worldwide, but access to care remains inadequate, especially for non-cancer patients. Video consultations are a promising tool in the provision of home-based palliative care, but an overview of evidence solely on video consultations in palliative care is lacking. ⋯ Using video technology in palliative care has both advantages and disadvantages. However, evidence beyond the focus on specialized palliative care and patients with cancer is limited. Future research should focus on how and when video consultations might replace in-person specialized palliative care and video consultations in general palliative care, in low and middle income countries; and involve patients with a non-cancer diagnosis.