Articles: palliative-care.
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The demand for specialist palliative medicine physicians, advanced practice providers, and other team members outstrips supply. Traditional paths to specialty practice will not meet projected need. ⋯ Barriers to leaving practice and returning to traditional training are high; not the least of which is the opportunity cost. In this roundtable, experts discuss what they have learned from current research, and point the way to additional needed research.
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Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic compelled rapid transition to work from home for the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Palliative, Rehabilitation, and Integrative Medicine (PRIM) department to ensure social distancing and prevention of transmission. Objectives: To survey the attitudes and beliefs of personnel toward remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: One hundred forty-eight clinical, research, and administrative PRIM department employees were invited to participate in an anonymous voluntary survey in May 2020, two months after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and transition to work from home in the geographic location of Houston, Texas. ⋯ Conclusions: The PRIM rapid transition to remote work was associated with positive perceptions by most members of the clinical, research, and administrative teams. Insight from this survey can serve as a model for future rapid transitions in remote work and merits follow-up studies to prepare us for a postpandemic work environment. Clinical Trial Registration number NCI-2021-01265.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · May 2022
Palliative Care Services within a Pediatric Hematology-Oncology Program in a Low-Resource Setting.
Outcomes for children with cancer in sub-Saharan Africa (SAA) are dismal due to delayed diagnosis and limited access to curative therapy. When establishing a pediatric hematology-oncology (PHO) program in low-resource settings, early integration of palliative care services becomes essential. While palliative care is a human right, equitable distribution is lacking. ⋯ Palliative care is a critical component of PHO programs worldwide. Programs must leverage existing networks to ensure optimal care to children and families. We demonstrate the feasibility of integrating palliative care services within a PHO program in a low-resource setting, which could serve as a model for other countries in SSA.
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Palliative medicine · May 2022
Do learners implement what they learn? Commitment-to-change following an interprofessional palliative care course.
Palliative care educators should incorporate strategies that enhance application into practice by learners. Commitment-to-change is an approach to reinforce learning and encourage application into practice; immediately post-course learners commit to making changes in their practices as a result of participating in the course ("statements") and then several weeks or months later are prompted to reflect on their commitments ("reflections"). ⋯ Examples of benefits to patients, families, services, colleagues, and themselves were described as a result of participating in the courses.
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Palliative medicine · May 2022
Investigating the benefits and harms of hypodermoclysis of patients in palliative care: A consecutive cohort study.
Palliative populations are at risk for dehydration which can cause discomfort, distress and cognitive symptoms. Subcutaneous hydration ('hypodermoclysis') has been used as an alternative administration route to the more invasive intravenous route, but research is lacking on its net clinical effects (harms and benefits) for palliative populations, particularly in real world settings. ⋯ Hypodermoclysis may improve certain symptoms in patients in palliative care but frequency of harms and benefits may differ at certain timepoints in the illness trajectory. Further research is needed to better delineate which patients will derive the most net clinical benefit from hypodermoclysis.