Journal of palliative medicine
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Introduction: Hospital-based supports for families following the death of a child are rare. Virtual interventions may address key barriers to providing bereavement care, but little is known about their acceptability, feasibility, and efficacy. Methods: Our hospital's palliative care program offered a six-week closed virtual support group for bereaved parents five times between 2021 and 2024. ⋯ There were no significant changes in meaning making or quality of life. Conclusion: This virtual support group was acceptable and feasible for bereaved parents. Additional research with larger, more diverse samples and more robust designs is needed.
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Introduction: The needs of patients living with malignant neoplasm, and those of their families and care partners, require a multidimensional and interdisciplinary approach. By systematically assessing these needs with validated tools, healthcare professionals can identify and monitor therapeutic objectives, interventions, and results. Objective: At the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO), we set out to update the ICO Toolkit-a set of instruments for assessing the physical, emotional, and social needs of palliative care patients. ⋯ Results: The final 19 instruments selected for the ICO Toolkit-2 achieved a degree of consensus of 90%-100%. Conclusions: The updated ICO Toolkit-2 facilitates a multidimensional, systematic, objective, and measurable assessment of the needs of malignant neoplasm patients throughout their cancer journey. Uptake of the new toolkit could improve the care and support provided to patients and their families and care partners.
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The literature available on the topic of education programs for noncancer patients' informal caregivers (ICs) is heterogeneous and fragmented in the setting of palliative care (PC). We conducted a scoping review (ScR) to map the literature on educational programs for ICs in home-based PC, considering the available reviews, qualitative studies, observational studies, studies of validation of measurement tools, uncontrolled trials, nonrandomized controlled trials, and feasibility studies. This ScR included 21 eligible records by searching PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, and CINAHL databases. ⋯ ICs can improve their knowledge, confidence, and attitudes toward PC. The literature summary might render the assistance more accessible to ICs to improve the quality of caregiving and nursing care linked to patient and caregiver outcomes. However, robust studies (e.g., randomized controlled trials) are still required to identify and establish the efficacy of each described intervention and, therefore, offer tailored approaches considering the diverse diseases and social and cultural characteristics of patients and ICs.
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Background: Many academic pediatric centers care for children with medical complexity (CMC) through established complex care and palliative care programs. There are little prior data investigating best practices for collaboration between these two subspecialties in caring for CMC. Objectives: The aim of this study is to explore the distinct and overlapping roles and responsibilities of pediatric complex care and palliative care teams as identified by providers when caring for a shared population of CMC and their families. ⋯ This overlap can vary between institutions and individual provider-caregiver dyads. Further studies are needed to explore collaborative practices on shared patients and caregiver perceptions on the benefits and challenges of utilizing both teams concurrently. Key Message: This qualitative study of providers of CMC highlights the overlapping roles and responsibilities between complex care and palliative care teams in caring for a shared population of patients and families.
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Introduction: Palliative care (PC) is essential for improving the quality of life for individuals with serious illnesses, yet access to PC services remains limited, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study aimed to assess the impact of a one-day PC training initiative for health care professionals in Uganda. Methods: Participants' pre- and post-course self-assessments, qualitative feedback, and satisfaction surveys were analyzed. ⋯ Course satisfaction was high. Conclusion: This study underscores the importance of investing in PC education to address the growing demand for PC in LMICs. The positive impact observed highlights the potential of such initiatives to bridge the gap in access to PC services and improve outcomes for patients facing life-threatening illnesses.