Kei Laguda

BSN-3B

NCM 114 RLE: Journal Reading Activity

Title: "What matters most for end-of-life care? Perspectives from community-based
palliative care providers and administrators"

A. Summary
The journal article is a research study that was comprehensively simplified. It used
methods such as interviews with a large cross-section of palliative care providers
serving home settings resulted in nine important domains of end-of-life care. Several
of the trends that were discovered correspond to broader findings of past research
and palliative care best practice aspects used in many countries. The study makes a
contribution by indicating which aspects of EOL are most important: quality EOL care
goes beyond managing physical pain and includes a holistic perspective of care, a
healthcare team that is both dedicated and flexible to accompanying their patients
and families on this journey, and is patient-centered.

It used a phenomenological design to gain a thorough understanding of what matters

most for EOL treatment from the perspective of palliative care professionals and
administrators. The most prevalent concept, as indicated by nearly half of the
responders, was that the patient's requests are granted. This refers to a patient-
centered approach to end-of-life care, in which quality care includes not just
controlling symptoms but also assisting patients in dying in the manner they prefer.
Respondents were more frequently related to the themes of Addressing Non-
Physical Needs and the Nature of Palliative Care Delivery than to Addressing
Physical Needs. Although pain and symptom control is prominent in the palliative
care literature, only approximately a third of respondents identified this function.
Although pain management is unquestionably important at the end of life,
respondents said that patients' emotional and spiritual agony can be more
overpowering than physical pain, and that patients who got spiritual and emotional
care were often able to gain a feeling of closure. Our findings show that great EOL
care goes beyond addressing physical pain, which is generally the primary emphasis
of providers; excellence also includes a comprehensive approach to care,
psychospiritual needs, and a dedicated healthcare team.
B. Reaction
Nurses are always on the front lines of the healthcare field, offering competent care,
compassion, and comfort to patients and families. However, the impending reality of
a patient's death can be extremely difficult for both patients and family members to
accept in a hospice care setting. This is the time when many difficult decisions must
be made about therapies that will assist the patient in their final weeks or months,
sometimes bringing quality of life concerns into play. According to the American
Nurses Association, nurses step in at this time to provide counsel for patients and
families facing difficult decisions and to assist them in adapting to hard realities.

When I try to imagine myself working on my clinical duties in the nearest future, I
have always thought about what I'm going to do, feel, and say when I encounter
dying patients. I mean, obviously that is inevitable especially in a hospital setting but
I reckon that it is definitely going to be a very essential point of my life where I'd learn
a lot about the consequential odds of a human's mortality. Being a nurse is definitely
a tough job and I know it's going to break my heart a lot of times but I guess it would
also help me become a stronger person and an instrument at the same time to save
lives as much as possible. That is why I have to be very socially-engaged with my
patients such as giving them their last wishes as best as I could because I know they
are wishing to have a peaceful and painless death in their hospital beds, surrounded
with their loved ones.

C. Bibliography

Mistry, B. (2015, June 1). What matters most for end-of-life care? Perspectives from

community-based palliative care providers and administrators. BMJ Open.

https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/5/6/e007492