What is Palliative Care?
The World Health Organization defines palliative care as “an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problem associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other problems, physical, psychosocial and spiritual.”
Palliative care is for the people with a life limiting or terminal illness that helps them to live their life as comfortable as possible.Palliative care identifies and treats symptoms which may be physical, emotional, spiritual or social. Because palliative care is based on individual needs, the services offered will differ but may include:
- Relief of pain and other symptoms e.g. vomiting, shortness of breath
- Resources such as equipment needed to aid care at home
- Assistance for families to come together to talk about sensitive issues
- Links to other services such as home help and financial support
- Support for people to meet cultural obligations
- Support for emotional, social and spiritual concerns
- Counselling and grief support
- Referrals to respite care services
Palliative care is also regarded as a family-centered model of care as it provides practical and emotional support to the family and carers too.
Who is Palliative Care for?
Palliative care is for people of any age who have been diagnosed with a serious illness that cannot be cured. Palliative care assists people with illnesses such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis, neurological disease, dementia, congenital anomalies and drug-resistant tuberculosis, AIDS, diabetes and end-stage kidney or lung disease to manage symptoms and improve quality of life.
For some people, palliative care may be beneficial from the time of diagnosis with a serious life-limiting illness. Palliative care can be given alongside treatments given by other doctors.
Apart from the patients, palliative care also aims to lower the suffering of the carers who provides care to the patients starting from the diagnosis of their illness. Palliative care takes into account both formal and informal carers.
Formal Carers
Providers; a paid professional; associated with a formal service system of the patients with life limiting illnesses. It may include:
- Physicians
- Nurses
- Volunteers
Informal Carers
These individuals may be primary or secondary caregivers and live with, or separately from, the person receiving care. It involves anyone who has a signification personal association with the patient with a terminal illness. It may include:
- Spouse
- Relative
- Friend
- Neighbor
Who is involved in the palliative care team?
Palliative care involves many health professionals who bring a range of skills to help you provide care during your illness. These professions include, but are not limited to:
- Doctors
- Nurses
- Social workers
- Physiotherapists
- Occupational and speech therapists
- Psychologists
- Trained volunteers
Where is palliative care provided?
Palliative care is provided where the person and their family wants, where possible. It may include:
- At home
- In hospital
- In a hospice
- In a residential aged care facility
Many people indicate a preference to spent their last time of their life at home and making this possible often depends on several factors, including:
- nature of the illness and amount of care the person needs
- how much support is available from the person’s family and community
- whether the person has someone at home who can provide physical care and support for them
References
- World Health Organization 2018. ‘Cancer’, viewed 25 April 2018, <http://www.who.int/cancer/palliative/definition/en/>
- Palliative Care Australia 2018. ‘Understanding palliative care’, viewed 25 April 2018, <http://palliativecare.org.au/understanding-palliative-care-parent-menu/understanding-palliative-care>