Palliative Care : Core Skills and Clinical Competencies

by Emanuel, Linda L.; Librach, S. Lawrence, M.D.

• ISBN13: 9781416025979
• ISBN10: 1416025979
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-07-27
• Publisher: Elsevier Science Health Science div

Summary

Edited by two leading pioneers of palliative medicine, this essential guide provides you with the core knowledge and skills necessary to provide comprehensive and compassionate care. Designed to meet the needs of the daily medical caretaker, this detailed text examines patient assessment, communication, cultural considerations, legal and ethical issues, advance care planning, symptom control, clinical management of specific illnesses, service delivery, interdisciplinary team composition, and more. From diagnosis to bereavement care, PALLIATIVE CARE: CORE SKILLS AND CLINICAL COMPETENCIES addresses all major clinical, physical, psychological, and spiritual management issues encountered in palliative care in a user-friendly, ready-reference format. Tap into expert guidance on all aspects of palliative care in one reference. Enhance pain management with a better understanding of the molecular and physiological mechanisms of suffering. Quickly review specific treatment protocols for both malignant and non-malignant illnesses, including HIV/AIDS, heart failure, renal failure, and cirrhosis. Recognize the characteristic features of specific illnesses and master the core clinical skills needed to manage their symptoms, including surgical palliation. Identify and meet the needs of special populations, including pediatric and geriatric patients. Access at-a-glance information on pharmacologymechanisms of action, indications in palliative care, incompatibility, adverse effects, dosage, and administrationwith a formulary of commonly used palliative drugs. Better understand and manage the common and unique challenges associated with delivering palliative care in various social settings. Educate patients and their families on the options available to them with the aid of helpful resources and an appendix outlining reimbursement mechanisms.

Table of Contents

Palliative Care: Core Skills	p. 1
General Foundations	p. 3
Palliative Care: A Quiet Revolution in Patient Care	p. 3
Suffering: The Hundred Little Deaths before Dying	p. 15
Comprehensive Assessment	p. 27
Communication Skills	p. 42
Negotiating Goals of Care: Changing Goals along the Trajectory of Illness	p. 70
Physical and Psychological Symptoms	p. 83
Multiple Symptoms and Multiple Illnesses	p. 83
Pain	p. 96
Nausea/Vomiting, Anorexia/Cachexia, and Fatigue	p. 115
Depression, Anxiety, and Delirium	p. 133
Constipation	p. 148
Urinary Incontinence	p. 155
Sexuality	p. 165
Dyspnea	p. 175
Personal Context	p. 193
Loss, Bereavement, and Adaptation	p. 193
Understanding and Respecting Cultural Differences	p. 206
Specific Situations and Skill Sets	p. 220
Advance Care Planning	p. 220
Responding to Requests for Euthanasia and Physician-Assisted Suicide	p. 235
Withholding and Withdrawing Life-Sustaining Therapies	p. 249
Last Hours of Living	p. 267
Legal and Ethical Issues in the United States	p. 294
Specific Types of Illness and Sites of Care	p. 305
Hematology/Oncology	p. 307
HIV/AIDS	p. 326
Heart Disease	p. 340
Kidney Failure	p. 355
Gastrointestinal Malignancies	p. 370
Neurodegenerative Diseases	p. 382
Principles of Palliative Surgery	p. 396
Chronic Diseases and Geriatrics	p. 409
Pulmonary Palliative Medicine	p. 420
Pediatric Palliative Care	p. 431
Palliative Care in the Intensive Care Unit	p. 441
Emergency Medicine and Palliative Care	p. 458
Service Delivery	p. 473
The Interdisciplinary Team	p. 475
Palliative Care Nursing	p. 487
Social Workers: The Connective Tissue of the Health Care System	p. 507
Spiritual Care	p. 524
Palliative Care in Long-Term Care Settings	p. 540
Integrating Palliative Care into Disease Management	p. 552
Palliative Care Services and Programs	p. 567
The Social Context	p. 583
The Economic Burden of End-of-Life Illness	p. 585
Palliative Care in Developing Countries	p. 597
Appendices
Formulary: Medication Tables	p. 615
Coding for Physician Services Related to Palliative Care	p. 661
Resources for Palliative and End-of-Life Care	p. 668
Subject Index	p. 681
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.