Harold, a sixty-eight year old man, came into the emergency department with the chief complaint of a worsening headache. Harold was informed of his diagnosis of cancer that had spread to his brain and the resulting poor prognosis. After several moments of thoughtful reflection, Harold was asked what he wanted to do. He laughed and replied, “I want to go fishing” (Ihrig 2013). Following his discharge, he went fishing; a week later he passed away. Harold is just one example of the individualistic and respectful approach to end-of-life care called palliative care. To palliative means to ease; in the case of medicine, palliative care eases the stressful burden of aggressive and terminal illnesses. Despite inaccurate beliefs, palliative care can
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When one is aware their life is coming to an end, they may feel scared, or excessively nervous about their death, in addition to their physical ailments. The symptoms that palliative care help with, along with management of pain, include “depression, anxiety, fatigue shortness of breath, constipation, nausea, loss of appetite and difficulty sleeping” (Center to Advance Palliative Care 2). It is widely, but mistakenly, thought that the mass prevalence of psychosocial symptoms, such as depression, and physical symptoms, like gastrointestinal disturbances, are normal in patients with serious illnesses (Meier and McCormick). Psychological distress, like stress and depression, are considered major symptoms of aggressive diseases. However, these symptoms are not untreatable, and should not be ignored in regard of medical success at expense of the quality of life of the patient as an individual. Failure to respond to spectrums of health other than physical distress may “intensify suffering” (Paulus). Palliative care allows a greater respect for life as it examines patients as a whole, instead of pushing excessive curative, or life-extending, efforts onto a person. As a patient receives more and more treatment, their quality of life decreases (Ihrig). Palliative healthcare should become the norm as it better helps control the complicated symptoms of advanced
When one is aware their life is coming to an end, they may feel scared, or excessively nervous about their death, in addition to their physical ailments. The symptoms that palliative care help with, along with management of pain, include “depression, anxiety, fatigue shortness of breath, constipation, nausea, loss of appetite and difficulty sleeping” (Center to Advance Palliative Care 2). It is widely, but mistakenly, thought that the mass prevalence of psychosocial symptoms, such as depression, and physical symptoms, like gastrointestinal disturbances, are normal in patients with serious illnesses (Meier and McCormick). Psychological distress, like stress and depression, are considered major symptoms of aggressive diseases. However, these symptoms are not untreatable, and should not be ignored in regard of medical success at expense of the quality of life of the patient as an individual. Failure to respond to spectrums of health other than physical distress may “intensify suffering” (Paulus). Palliative care allows a greater respect for life as it examines patients as a whole, instead of pushing excessive curative, or life-extending, efforts onto a person. As a patient receives more and more treatment, their quality of life decreases (Ihrig). Palliative healthcare should become the norm as it better helps control the complicated symptoms of advanced