The American journal of hospice & palliative care
-
Am J Hosp Palliat Care · Dec 2012
Spiritual needs and spiritual care for veterans at end of life and their families.
Spiritual care is an important domain of palliative care programs across the country and in the Veterans Affairs (VA) Healthcare System specifically. This qualitative study assessed the spiritual needs, spiritual care received, and satisfaction with spiritual care of both Veterans at the end of life and their families. ⋯ Some Veterans reported military experience enhanced their spirituality. Generally, respondents reported satisfaction with VA spiritual care, but indicated that Veterans may benefit from greater access to VA chaplains and explicit discussion of the impact of their military experience on their spirituality.
-
Am J Hosp Palliat Care · Dec 2012
Antimicrobial use at the end of life among hospitalized patients with advanced cancer.
We sought to evaluate antimicrobial use among patients with advanced cancer. ⋯ Antimicrobial use was common among patients with advanced cancer. Even after transition to comfort care, more than one third of patients remained on antimicrobials. The risks and burdens of antimicrobials should be carefully examined when comfort is the stated goal.
-
Am J Hosp Palliat Care · Dec 2012
Revision and validation of a medication assessment tool for chronic cancer pain management.
The medication assessment tool for cancer pain management (MAT-CP) measures the quality of medication use in relation to guidelines. The original MAT-CP was reviewed, modified and tested at a comprehensive cancer center in Jordan. The tool comprised 30 criteria covering six different aspects of pain management. ⋯ The tool's implementation showed opportunities for improvement in pain management at our institution. The MAT-CP was revised and validated for the first time outside Europe. This tool can be routinely used to assess and compare the quality of pain management in different institutions.
-
Am J Hosp Palliat Care · Dec 2012
Integrative palliative care, advance directives, and hospital outcomes of critically ill older adults.
To examine the associations between palliative care types and hospital outcomes for patients who have or do not have advance directives. ⋯ Significantly lower hospital costs and in-hospital deaths with higher hospice discharges were observed in integrative palliative care compared to consultative palliative care, but these findings were diminished with the presence of advance directives.
-
Am J Hosp Palliat Care · Nov 2012
A protocol for the acute control of agitation in palliative care: a preliminary report.
Agitation is one of the most frequent causes for palliative sedation. It often requires urgent control to avoid negative consequences and even endangerment of all involved, including the patients themselves. A protocol for the control of episodes of agitation was developed, based on a previous experience. ⋯ The median time from the beginning of sedation to the control of agitation was 15 minutes with a range from 1 minute (2 cases) to 3 hours and 5 minutes (only 1 case). In 71 cases (83%), only the first dose was needed. There were no significant complications.