Comment: Patient-held records: putting patients in control through technological change
Julia Riley
pp 109-109
The stages of technologically driven change have been well described: in stage 1, technology empowers the current human players within the current system; in stage 2, it replaces many of the human players within the current system; and in stage 3, it overturns much of the current system and replaces it with something else.
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How do UK palliative care physicians manage delirium? Results of an online survey
Emma M Lowe, Victoria Elliot, Rebecca L Owen, Charlotte Adams and Rachel E Sheils
pp 110-113
Delirium can be highly distressing for palliative care patients and their families, but there is little guidance on its management relating specifically to the end of life. Emma M Lowe, Victoria Elliot, Rebecca L Owen, Charlotte Adams and Rachel E Sheils have investigated, via an online questionnaire, how delirium is assessed and treated by UK palliative care physicians.
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Use of point-of-care ultrasound in palliative care: a case report
Graham Grove and David Holden
pp 114-115
Point-of-care ultrasound is increasingly used to complement clinical findings in many specialties beyond emergency medicine and critical care. Graham Grove and David Holden describe how the technology was used at the home of a patient with presumed malignant ascites to bring symptom relief.
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Case study masterclass 86: A 77-year-old man with lymphoma who develops shingles and severe neuropathic pain
Mark Banting
pp 116-117
Andrew, who is 77 years old, lives with his wife Sheila, aged 74, in a two-storey house in a small town on the south coast of England. After having lived most of their life in Manchester, Andrew and Sheila moved down south when they retired ten years ago. They have struggled to make friends in their new area. They have no children and no other family nearby.
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What do acute hospital clinicians think of patient-held records for palliative patients?
Tania Blackmore
pp 118-123
Patient-held records are seen as improving communication and giving patients more control, but they are far from being widely used. What do senior nurses and doctors working in acute hospital care think of their use in a palliative context? Tania Blackmore presents the results of an exploratory pilot survey.
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Polypharmacy in an inpatient hospice setting – exploring the patients’ views
Kathleen Connors, Jennie Pickard, Alison Phippen, Jan Codling, Dai Roberts and Samantha Kay
pp 125-127
As patients approach the end of life, the number of medications they are given for treatment and symptom relief often increases. But having to take multiple medications can be a burden in itself. Kathleen Connors, Jennie Pickard, Alison Phippen, Jan Codling, Dai Roberts and Samantha Kay report on the results of a survey in which they asked hospice inpatients what they think of their medication.
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Nicotine withdrawal: an often overlooked and easily reversible cause of terminal restlessness
Shamila Ginige
pp 128-129
Nicotine withdrawal is often overlooked as a possible underlying cause of terminal restlessness or delirium. It is easily reversible and should definitely be considered when assessing delirious patients in palliative care, explains Shamila Ginige.
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Why do older people get less palliative care than younger people?
Anna Lloyd, Marilyn Kendall, Emma Carduff, Debbie Cavers, Barbara Kimbell and Scott A Murray
pp 132-137
Anna Lloyd, Marilyn Kendall, Emma Carduff, Debbie Cavers, Barbara Kimbell and Scott A Murray have analysed data from four studies into the end-of-life experiences of people with glioma, bowel cancer, liver failure and frailty. They found that patients aged 70 and over received less palliative care. Why?
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A day in the life of … Niamh Eve, Hospice Care Co-ordinator
Niamh Eve
pp 138-139
St Helena Hospice serves the population of north-east Essex and the Colne Valley area of mid-Essex, and is available to anyone who has been diagnosed with a life-limiting illness. The hospice comprises an inpatient unit (IPU) with 15 beds, two health and well-being centres (in Tendring and Colchester) and a large community team.
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Hunch or proof? Food for thought from the early days of hospice care
Mary Baines
pp 140-142
In November 2015, a celebration of the King’s College London masters in palliative care was held at the Cicely Saunders Institute. Mary Baines gave a keynote lecture, highlighting useful lessons from the past. This article is an adapted version of her speech.
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Book review: Compassion – The Essence of Palliative and End-of-Life Care
Simon Noah Etkind
pp 142-142
‘Compassion asks us to go where it hurts, to enter into places of pain, to share in brokenness, fear, confusion and anguish [...] Compassion means full immersion in the condition of being human.’ Using this definition by Nouwen et al as a starting point, this book aims to explore the lived experience of compassion in palliative care by presenting the views and experiences of twenty professionals and leaders working in and around the field.
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An opioids training workshop in Rwanda – collaborating with pharmacists for positive change
Victoria Smart and Julie McCarthy
pp 143-145
In May 2015, Victoria Smart and Julie McCarthy from Mary Stevens Hospice in England travelled to Rwanda to provide an interactive training workshop on opioids to half the country’s pharmacists and medical leads. Delegates came out with increased confidence in prescribing morphine for pain control. Here the authors describe how apprentice-style learning can help colleagues on another continent.
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Is pedagogy of mortality a good approach to bereavement care?
Paul J Moon
pp 146-148
The intent of bereavement care is never questioned, but one should be clear about the aims of such support. Paul J Moon offers a brief review of the existing theories of grief and bereavement, and outlines the contribution that the newer concept of pedagogy of mortality could make in this field.
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The Palliative Care Bridge: an online educational resource
Rod MacLeod
pp 150-151
The Palliative Care Bridge website was launched in 2013 as part of a vast programme intended to help more people in New South Wales, Australia, to be cared for and die at home. Rod MacLeod describes this online information resource.
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Case study masterclass 86 answers: A 77-year-old man with lymphoma who develops shingles and severe neuropathic pain
Mark Banting
pp 152-152
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European insight: Irish Association for Palliative Care: providing an expert collective voice to shape policy in Ireland
Niamh Clowry
pp 153-155
Despite reaching top rankings worldwide, palliative care in Ireland still needs better access to services and improved awareness of professionals, says the Irish Association for Palliative Care on the eve of the 9th World Research Congress of the European Association for Palliative Care in Dublin in June 2016.
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