palliative care

palliative care, form of health care that seeks to improve the quality of life of patients with terminal disease through the prevention and relief of suffering. It is facilitated by the early identification of life-threatening disease and by the treatment of pain and disease-associated problems, including those that are physical, psychological, social, or spiritual in nature. As defined, palliative care begins at the point of diagnosis of terminal disease and can be delivered in a variety of health care settings. In general, it involves health and social care professionals working in hospitals, communities, hospices, and voluntary sectors.

Palliative care has been associated with many different terms, including terminal care, care of the dying, end-of-life care, and supportive care. However, these forms of care are not necessarily the same as palliative care. Likewise, palliative care is also sometimes described as hospice care. While hospice care does imply palliative care, it is specific to care provided near the end of life (see below Hospice care). In contrast, palliative care covers the duration of a patient’s illness and, hence, may be delivered over the course of years.

Principles of palliative care

Palliative care emphasizes three main principles:

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• 1) A team-based approach is fundamental in managing distressing symptoms, such as pain, nausea, fatigue, and depression. It is also a necessary component in meeting the physical and psychosocial needs of the patient and his or her family.

• 2) Dying is a normal process. Symptom management is needed in order to help patients live life to the fullest until they die.

• 3) The synthesis of physical care with psychological and spiritual care fulfills a vital role in the overall care of the patient.

Types of palliative care

The concept of offering medical care for the dying within a setting organized for that purpose emerged in Dublin in the late 19th century and was established in England early in the following century. The founding of the palliative care movement, however, is widely attributed to Dame Cicely Saunders, a British physician and humanitarian who pioneered the palliative care approach with the opening of St. Christopher’s Hospice in London in 1967. In the United Kingdom it took a further two decades for palliative care to be recognized as a medical speciality, and in the United States it was not accepted as a medical discipline until 2006. Today palliative care is recognized internationally, perhaps most importantly by the World Health Organization (WHO). Its acceptance as an area of medicine led to numerous advances in its delivery and to changes in its organization as a system of care. As a result, palliative care has been subdivided into general and specialist palliative care.

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Hospice care

Hospice care, which is concerned with the delivery of medical, psychological, and spiritual support near the end of a patient’s life, developed largely from the work of charitable organizations. Indeed, the first hospice facility in Dublin was established by a group of Irish nuns known as the Sisters of Charity. Today hospice facilities provide a variety of services, including specialist and community palliative care. In addition, hospice care may be delivered in any of several different settings, including at hospice inpatient units, in hospitals or nursing homes with hospice beds, at a patient’s home, or at a hospice daycare.

Hospice inpatient units were initially established to deal with the needs of patients suffering from terminal cancer. Hospice services increasingly have been sought from patients with other terminal illnesses, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS; motor neuron disease). Children’s hospices have been developed for the needs of children requiring palliative care for conditions such as degenerative or malignant disease.

Patients are admitted to inpatient hospice care for a variety of reasons, including assessment, rehabilitation, pain and symptom management, and short respite stays or terminal care. Families are encouraged to be involved in care where appropriate, and visiting tends to be open. Staff normally have access to specialized training and education in palliative care.

Community palliative care teams

A community palliative care team may consist of specialist palliative care nurses who visit patients and families in their own homes or who are part of a larger team that delivers care to patients in facilities such as hospices or hospitals. In the early 21st century, hospital and community palliative care nurses began to work more closely together, often crossing the boundaries that traditionally separated hospital and community care.

The role of the community palliative care team includes providing support and advice on pain and other distressing symptoms, providing emotional support for the patient and their families, and providing bereavement support. Charities have led the way in providing community-based support by providing nursing services.

Developments in palliative care

Palliative care is a global concern, and a steady rise in the number of people who are living longer with degenerative disease suggests that demand for palliative care services will increase in the 21st century. As a result, advancing and improving palliative care are areas of intense interest. Continuous improvements in care have been supported by developments such as the Liverpool Care Pathway for the Dying Patient and the Gold Standards Framework in the United Kingdom and by groups such as the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization in the United States, Palliative Care Australia, and the Indian Association of Palliative Care in India. The Liverpool Care Pathway is used by health care professionals to plan interventions in the last stages and hours of life and is intended to help guide decisions about appropriate interventions and treatments, both physical and psychosocial. The needs of the patient and family are central to this pathway.

In some places, palliative care standards are incorporated into a larger system of care. For example, the Gold Standards Framework offers guidance to primary health care teams and has identified tasks that help improve end-of-life care in the community. Thus, the framework is intended to be used throughout a patient’s illness rather than only in the last days of life. Its principles reflect those of WHO and include symptom control, effective communication, coordination and continuity in services, support and care of the dying and their families, and continued learning for staff.