An Introduction to Palliative Care

Palliative care is an area of health care that focuses on relieving and preventing the suffering of patients. Unlike hospice care, palliative medicine is appropriate for patients in all disease stages, including those undergoing treatment for curable illnesses and those living with chronic diseases, as well as patients who are nearing the end of life.

Palliative care:

• Provides relief from pain, shortness of breathes, nausea, and other distressing systoms
• Affirm life and regards dying as a normal process
• Intend to hasten or prospone death
• Integrates the psychological and spiritual aspects of the patient care
• Offers a support system to help patients live as actively as possibble
• offer a support sysyem to help the family cope
• Uses a team aproach to address the needs of patients and their families
• will enhance quality of life

Palliative care at any stage focuses  on the comfort  of the person who has a life-limiting condition. Comfort can means pain is managed; an environment that is pleasant and personalized; people around that provide love and reassurance; and spiritual and emotional needs are acknowledged as well as physical needs.

In home based palliative care expert advice is given at home. Here the patient is at home. The family members are counselled and trained for the final moments. The patient is managed so that he/she remains comfortable physically, socially, and spiritually. Here home carer support teams reach the patient with various specialties to help the patient and family.

Home-based palliative care seems to be the management. Here the patient is the first priority of all work in the family. The patient has the feeling that the family is near and is also comforted by known surroundings. There are many psyches playing here such as known surroundings, known members or attendants, the comfort of home atmosphere; the last hours in the home may be a great relief.

Thus, we can conclude that palliative care is very beneficial for patients who are fighting with incurable disease and want their end to be happy as their life was.