Journal of palliative medicine
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Pediatric palliative care (PPC) specialists recognize spiritual care as integral to the services offered to seriously ill children and their families. Little is known about how PPC programs deliver spiritual care. ⋯ Our survey of these PPC programs found that spiritual care was typically provided by staff chaplains, and our interviews indicated that chaplains appeared to be well-integrated members of these teams. Further research is needed to evaluate how well the spiritual needs of patients, families, and staff are being met, and the organizational factors that support the delivery of spiritual care in children's hospitals.
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To examine the reported rates and predictive factors for sleep disturbance in patients with bone metastases. ⋯ Age, Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS), pain score, and lung primary were the significant variables associated with sleep disturbance. The scores for sleep disturbance improved significantly post-RT in responders at week 4 and 12.
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Understanding current end of life (EOL) care delivery in acute care is an important prerequisite to positively influencing practice, and published New Zealand (NZ) and international data are limited. Therefore, staff perceptions of EOL care in the hospital setting were investigated via survey. This article presents key findings. ⋯ The quality and timeliness of EOL care was significantly influenced by the elements informing the themes and the pervasive nature and importance of communication. Meeting the needs of dying patients in acute care was complex but a significant priority for staff.