Palliative medicine
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Palliative medicine · Dec 2015
Results of a transparent expert consultation on patient and public involvement in palliative care research.
Support and evidence for patient, unpaid caregiver and public involvement in research (user involvement) are growing. Consensus on how best to involve users in palliative care research is lacking. ⋯ For involvement in palliative care research to succeed, early and flexible involvement is required. Researchers should advertise opportunities for involvement and promote impact of involvement via dissemination plans. Users should prioritise adding value to research through enhancing productivity, quality and relevance. More research is needed not only to inform implementation and ensure effectiveness but also to investigate the cost-effectiveness of involvement in palliative care research.
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Palliative medicine · Dec 2015
Enabling a family caregiver-led assessment of support needs in home-based palliative care: Potential translation into practice.
Systematic assessment of family caregivers' support needs and integrating these into service planning according to evidence-based research are vital to improving caregivers' outcomes and their capacity to provide care at end of life. ⋯ Our study has successfully addressed the call for alternatives to the professional assessment paradigm using the Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool approach as a caregiver-led intervention facilitated by health professionals. Integrating the Carer Support Needs Assessment Tool in existing practice is fundamental to achieving better caregiver outcomes.
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Palliative medicine · Dec 2015
Estimating the cost of caring for people with cancer at the end of life: A modelling study.
People with advanced cancer require a range of health, social and informal care during the final phases of life. The cost of providing care to this group as they approach the end of their lives is unknown, but represents a significant cost to health and social care systems, charities patients and their families. ⋯ The cost to society of providing care to people at the end of their lives is significant. Much of this cost is borne by informal care givers. The cost to formal care services of replacing this care with paid care giving would be significant and demand for care will increase as the demographic profile of the population ages.
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Palliative medicine · Dec 2015
Difficult decisions: An interpretative phenomenological analysis study of healthcare professionals' perceptions of oxygen therapy in palliative care.
The role of oxygen therapy to palliate dyspnoea is controversial. Without a clear evidence base oxygen is commonly prescribed, sometimes to the detriment of patients. This use of oxygen appears to be an entrenched culture, the roots of which remain obscure. ⋯ Findings suggest that oxygen therapy in palliative care poses an on-going dilemma for healthcare professionals striving to provide optimum care. It seems patients and families often expect and welcome oxygen, but the perception of oxygen as a solution to dyspnoea can conflict with healthcare professionals' own doubt and experiences. There appears to be an emotional cost associated with this dilemma and the choices that need to be made.