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A Culture of Comfort: Palliative Care at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Reville, Barbara |
| Copyright Year | 2008 |
| Abstract | To say that Yolanda never had much of a childhood is too easy. She was diagnosed withsickle cell disease at birth. Her mother died when she was a girl and her father nevertook an active role in her life. She moved into adulthood with pain requiring intra-venous narcotics. And then things got worse. Her kidneys failed four months ago. Herlife was constrained by her three-day-a-week dialysis appointments. Recently, she wasadmitted to intensive care for seizures.Today she spends more time in the hospital thanhome. She knows she faces an early death. And she is terrified.Yolanda, not her real name, is a 38 year-old patient on the Palliative Care Service atThomas Jefferson University Hospital. Palliation is synonymous with comforting;therefore palliative care optimizes quality of life by addressing physical, emotional andspiritual needs. The skill set of palliative care professionals includes pain and symptommanagement,communication,and finesse a t planning health care post-hospitalization.Doctors and nurses on the Palliative Care Service come from family and internal medicine, geriatrics, and oncology. Jefferson physicians have consulted the team fornearly 400 hospitalized patients since the inauguration of the service in March, 2006.The Palliative Care Service visits Yolanda to offer support and monitor her pain regimen.The team has earned her trust by being there on good days and bad. Visits from a massage therapist are arranged; scented oils and a gentle touch provide some relief.Asocial worker provides supportive counseling. An art therapist helps to reduce stressby providing an outlet for creative expression. Conversations with Yolanda reveal fearsand wishes about the end of her life.Many physicians avoid frank talks with patients about their prognosis so as to “keephope alive.” Without a forecast of the chances for long-term recovery, seriously illpatients and their families often choose aggressive and futile medical treatments.Surveys report that surviving family members regret their lack of preparation for deathand the memory of a “medicalized” |
| Starting Page | 5 |
| Ending Page | 5 |
| Page Count | 1 |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Volume Number | 21 |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://jdc.jefferson.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1570&context=hpn |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://jdc.jefferson.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1570&context=hpn&httpsredir=1&referer= |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
