Articles: palliative-care.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Aug 2021
Observational StudyAssessment of Palliative Care Needs in a Kenyan Intensive Care Unit Using a Trigger-Based Model.
Palliative care triggers have been used in the intensive care unit (ICU) setting, usually in high-income countries, to identify patients who may benefit from palliative care consults. The utility and benefits of palliative care triggers in the ICU have not been previously studied in sub-Saharan Africa. ⋯ A trigger-based model, geared to the needs of the specific ICU, may be one way of improving integration of palliative care into the ICU, especially in sub-Saharan Africa.
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Background: Family caregivers of bedridden or homebound patients are at risk of adverse physical and psychological outcomes. There is a need for a culturally adapted and valid instrument for measuring caregiver burden in palliative care programs. Objective: To develop a reliable and valid instrument to measure the self-perceived burden of informal caregivers of patients with serious health-related suffering. ⋯ Two sub-scales-consequences of caregiving and lack of financial security-were derived. The final nine-item Likert-type Achutha Menon Centre-Caregiver Burden Inventory (AMC-CBI) had a content validity index of 0.77, Cronbach's alpha of 0.82, and high test-retest reliability (ρ = 0.87, p < 0.001). Conclusion: The AMC-CBI is a valid and reliable instrument for burden assessment of caregivers of patients served by the home-based palliative care program in Kerala, India.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Aug 2021
ReviewA scoping review of end-of-life communication in international palliative care guidelines for acute care settings.
End-of-life communication in acute care settings can be challenging and many patients and families have reported low satisfaction with those conversations. ⋯ Palliative and end-of-life guidelines applicable to acute care settings outline the purpose of end-of-life communication and address how, when, and by whom such conversations are best initiated and facilitated. How guidelines are developed and what aspects of communications are included and emphasized may differ across countries related to role differences of physicians and nurses and national laws and regulations.