The Hospice Companion

by Fine, Perry G

• ISBN13: 9780195369977
• ISBN10: 0195369971
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-07-01
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

The Hospice Companion is designed to promote, establish, maintain and continuously improve comprehensive systems of care that ensure the highest quality of services to meet the needs of patients and their families during the last phase of life. On behalf of their patients, all hospiceproviders must inculcate processes of care that lead to maximal comfort and functional capacities, and a sense of being valued throughout the final stages of any chronic and progressive illness.The values embodied in The Hospice Companion reflect a commitment to these premises: * The dying patient's achievable goals are the highest priority of care; * Family preferences are respected and supported whenever possible; * All terminally ill patients and their families deserve access to hospicecare; * Ongoing investment to advance the art and science of palliative care is a moral imperative; * The spirit of Hospice as the most humanistic form of care at the end of life must be continually nurtured through interdisciplinary work. More than ever it is incumbent upon those who provide care to those with life-limiting illnesses to be keenly aware of both the extent and the limits of the technological advances that can add either great burden or great benefit to seriously ill patients and their families. The Hospice Companionhas been created to operationalize the mission and values of modern-day Hospice through the individual and combined efforts of our most valuable asset, the Hospice professional. The title word 'Companion' was expressly chosen for the profound meaning it suggests: that companionship, in the manyforms it can take, is the key ingredient to care. This book represents the practical embodiment of the basic, fundamental elements of care, through a focus on common problems confronting patients, their families, and their caregivers. The Hospice Companion is intended as a guide through which somemastery over the seemingly complex, challenging, and often times chaotic world of advance disease may be derived. use of this 'tool' to direct processes of care during the intense interpersonal experiences of hospice work should allow the greatest opportunity for personal and professional growth anda deeply gratifying sense of accomplishment as you proceed in the all-important work of caring for the dying.

Table of Contents

General Processes

Palliative Care at the End of Life: Blending Structure and Function

From Information to Care

Balancing Benefits and Burdens

The Interdisciplinary Team (IDT)

Addressing Needs over Time

Documentation

Personal, Social and Environmental Processes

Abuse in the Home

Advance Care Planning and Directives for Healthcare Interventions

Changes in Body Image and Loss of Independence

Changes in Family Dynamics

Completing Worldly Business

Controlled Substances: Misuse and Abuse

Cultural Differences: Respect, Understanding, Adapting Care

Denial

Grief ReactionsLiving Environment, Finances and Support Systems

Suicide: Risk, Prevention, Coping When It Happens

Palliative Care of Leading Symptoms

Air Hunger (Dyspnea)

Agitation and Anxiety

Anorexia and Cachexia

Belching and Burping (Eructation)

Bleeding, Oozing and Malodorous Lesions

Confusion/Delirium

Constipation

Coughing

Depression

Diarrhea and Ano-Rectal Problems

Dysphagia and Oropharyngeal Problems

Edema: Peripheral Edema, Ascites, and Lymphedema

Fatigue, Weakness (Aesthenia) and Excessive Sedation

Fever and Diaphoresis

Hiccups

Imminent Death (including terminal restlessness, congestion and secretions)

Insomnia and Nocturnal Restlessness

Nausea and Vomiting

Pain

Pruritus

Seizures

Skeletal Muscle and Bladder Spasms

Skin Breakdown: Prevention and Treatment

Urinary Problems

Xerostomia (Dry Mouth)

Appendices

Palliative Radiation Therapy in End-of-Life Care: Evidence-Based Principles

Principles of Pharmacotherapy

Ketamine Protocols

New York Heart Classification-a clinical guide

Palliative Performance Scale (PPS)

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.