Canadian oncology nursing journal = Revue canadienne de nursing oncologique
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All terminally ill individuals should have access to palliative care that gives equal importance to all aspects of suffering. In spite of all the efforts made, some of these individuals will, unfortunately, be left with suffering described as "refractory". ⋯ There is much controversy around this practice, especially when it is used to alleviate suffering of a more existential nature. This article aims first to define the practice of palliative sedation, second to explore the concept of existential suffering in palliative care and third to address the implications for nursing practice.
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The Canadian Triage Acuity Score (CTAS) is a validated triage method used in Canadian emergency departments (ED) that groups patients according to severity of presenting illness (CIHI, 2005). According to Tanabe, Gimbel, Yarnold and Adams (2004), five-level triage systems can be utilized in order to benchmark with similar programs. ⋯ In order to appropriately utilize resources, assist patients in a timely manner according to acuity, and compare and contrast data to that which is traditionally reported from our area EDs, we implemented the use of a validated triage methodology, CTAS, in this urgent care clinic. The following paper describes the University Health Network experience with utilizing CTAS in an oncology population.
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The concept of caring is central to the practice of nursing. Recent focus on patient-centred care highlights the importance of viewing caring from the patient's perspective. A comparative descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted to determine if there was a difference in oncology patients' and nurses' perceptions of caring. ⋯ This paper reports on a subset of 19 patients and 15 nurses from the oncology unit. There were significant differences between patients' and nurses' perceptions on overall caring and on several individual behaviours. In order to provide true patient-centred care, innovative approaches to addressing these differences are needed.