American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine This is an RSS file. You can use it to subscribe to this data in your favourite RSS reader or to display this data on your own website or blog.

Behavioral and Educational Interventions to Support Family Caregivers in End-of-Life Care: A Systematic Review
This article synthesizes behavioral and educational interventions that support family caregivers in end-of-life care. A systematic review was conducted and searched interventional studies published between 2004 and 2014 in PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, and The Cochrane Library electronic databases. Fourteen studies were identified and analyzed: 4 educational studies, 6 cognitive behavioral therapy studies, and 4 psychoeducational studies. All educational and behavioral interventions had developed structures and treatment manuals and improved family caregivers’ outcomes. The cognitive behavioral therapy resulted in more pos...
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Chi, N.-C., Demiris, G., Lewis, F. M., Walker, A. J., Langer, S. L. Tags: Review Articles Source Type: research

A Thematic Literature Review: The Importance of Providing Spiritual Care for End-of-Life Patients Who Have Experienced Transcendence Phenomena
The objectives were firstly to acknowledge the importance of such experiences and secondly to provide supportive spiritual care to dying patients. Information surrounding the aforementioned concepts is underreported in the literature. The following 4 key themes emerged: spiritual comfort; peaceful, calm death; spiritual transformation; and unfinished business. The review established the importance of transcendence phenomena being accepted as spiritual experiences by health care professionals. Nevertheless, health care professionals were found to struggle with providing spiritual care to patients who have experienced them. ...
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Broadhurst, K., Harrington, A. Tags: Review Articles Source Type: research

Naloxegol: A Novel Therapy in the Management of Opioid-Induced Constipation
Opioid-related bowel dysfunction is a common and potentially severe adverse effect from treatment with opioid analgesics. Its development is not dose related, nor do patients develop tolerance. Opioid-induced constipation (OIC) can lead to fecal impaction, bowel obstruction, and bowel perforation as well as noncompliance with opioid analgesics and poor quality of life. Routine administration of laxatives is necessary to maintain bowel function, and, in refractory cases, other modalities must be pursued. Available options are limited but include peripherally acting μ-opioid receptor antagonists (PAMORAs), including methy...
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Jones, R., Prommer, E., Backstedt, D. Tags: Pharmacology Update Source Type: research

Realistic Survival Outcomes After Vasopressor Use in the Intensive Care Unit
Conclusion: Patients started on vasopressors in the ICU have very poor outcomes. Being able to quantify this accurately is important to clinicians having discussions with family members. (Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine)
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Farkas, D. T., Rahnemai-Azar, A. A., Kunhammed, S. S., Greenbaum, A., Bibi, S., John, M. M. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

A Description of Inpatient Palliative Care Actions for Patients With Acute Heart Failure
In a recent randomized trial, inpatient palliative care (PC) visits were associated with improved quality of life and symptom burden for patients with heart failure. To better understand what actions by PC providers may have led to those outcomes, we conducted chart reviews of 101 patients in the intervention group (who received PC). Palliative care actions are described for all patients and for those with higher symptoms. Orders were written for 24% of patients, most frequently for pain. Recommendations to change current care were made for 40% of patients. At least 1 element of future care planning was documented for 99% ...
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Jorgenson, A., Sidebottom, A. C., Richards, H., Kirven, J. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

A Home-Based Palliative Care Consult Service for Veterans
We describe the development and implementation of a home-based palliative care consult service for Veterans with advanced illness. A retrospective chart review was performed on 73 Veterans who received a home-based palliative care consult. Nearly one-third were 80 years of age or older, and nearly one-third had a palliative diagnosis of cancer. The most common interventions of the consult team included discussion of advance directives, completion of a "do not resuscitate" form, reduction/stoppage of at least 1 medication, explanation of diagnosis, referral to home-based primary care program, referral to hospice, and assess...
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Golden, A. G., Antoni, C., Gammonley, D. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

Perspectives of Health Care Providers on US South Asians Attitudes Toward Pain Management at End of Life
A lack of research on pain management among seriously ill South Asians reveals a critical gap in the knowledge base regarding culturally responsive end-of-life care. This qualitative descriptive study investigated the perspectives of health care providers that have cared for seriously ill older South Asians, on the attitudes of US South Asians toward the management of pain experienced at end of life and the factors that influenced these attitudes. Thematic analysis of interviews and focus group discussions with 57 health care providers indicated that providers perceive South Asian patients and families to be generally relu...
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Khosla, N., Washington, K. T., Regunath, H. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

Provider Difficulties With Spiritual and Forgiveness Communication at the End of Life
Conclusion: The majority of participants indicated they were involved in spiritual and forgiveness communication. The most difficult communication included talking with family after death and facilitating forgiveness between patients and families. These findings support the importance of spiritual communication in clinical practice, and the need for clinician training in communicating about spirituality and forgiveness with patients and families. (Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine)
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Wittenberg, E., Ferrell, B., Goldsmith, J., Buller, H. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

Feasibility and Acceptability of a Brief Motivational Stage-Tailored Intervention to Advance Care Planning: A Pilot Study
Conclusion: Health care professionals and service providers who interact with older adults should tailor ACP dialogues in accordance with individuals’ motivation. (Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine)
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Ko, E., Hohman, M., Lee, J., Ngo, A.-N., Woodruff, S. I. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

Pediatric Palliative Care Pilot Curriculum: Impact of "Pain Cards" on Resident Education
Conclusion: This longitudinal curriculum, designed specifically for pediatric residents, was built into an existing training program and proved to be popular, feasible, and effective at improving comfort with basic palliative care principles. (Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine)
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Barnett, M. D., Maurer, S. H., Wood, G. J. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

An Initial Investigation of Do Not Resuscitate Acceptance in Egypt
Discussion: These and additional results provide objective evidence that DNR will not be rejected outright in Egypt. More formal surveys are justified and will provide needed guidance for implementing DNR and related end-of-life medical care in Egypt. (Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine)
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Hassanin, F. S., Schaalan, M. F., Kamal, K. M., Miller, F. D. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

A Distress Protocol for Respiratory Emergencies in Terminally Ill Patients With Lung Cancer or Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
A combination of opioid, midazolam, and scopolamine (that we call "distress protocol" [DP]) is used to induce transient sedation when emergencies occur in palliative care. We wished to describe the prescription and administration of DP in terminally ill patients with either lung cancer or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In a retrospective study, 96 of 100 patients with cancer and 85 of 100 patients with COPD had a DP prescribed. Thirty patients with cancer and 29 with COPD received at least 1 DP. All patients receiving a DP for an appropriate indication were sedated within 30 minutes. There was no difference ...
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - October 2, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Godbout, K., Tremblay, L., Lacasse, Y. Tags: Original Articles Source Type: research

Suicide and Self-Determination
(Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine)
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - August 7, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Baumrucker, S. J., Carter, G. T., McCall-Burton, M., Stolick, M., Oertli, K. A., Schmidt, L. S., Adkins, R. W. Tags: Ethics Roundtable Source Type: research

A Systematic Review of Family Meeting Tools in Palliative and Intensive Care Settings
Conclusion: There is need to standardize family meeting tools and develop tools to help family members effectively engage in the process. (Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine)
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - August 7, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Singer, A. E., Ash, T., Ochotorena, C., Lorenz, K. A., Chong, K., Shreve, S. T., Ahluwalia, S. C. Tags: Review Articles Source Type: research

Patient Safety and End-of-Life Care: Common Issues, Perspectives, and Strategies for Improving Care
This article synthesizes recent systematic reviews and additional research on improving patient safety and end-of-life care and compares each field’s perspective on common issues, both in traditional patient safety frameworks and in other areas, and how current approaches in each field can inform the other. The article then applies these overlapping concepts to a key example area: improving documentation of patient preferences for life-sustaining treatment. The synthesis demonstrates how end-of-life issues should be incorporated into patient safety initiatives. In addition, evaluating overlap and comparable issues be...
Source: American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine - August 7, 2016 Category: Palliative Care Authors: Dy, S. M. Tags: Review Articles Source Type: research