• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.141-146
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• 2012

Over the past several decades, the assessment of quality of life (QoL) has increasingly played a prominent role in both clinical practice and research regardless of the medical field. Palliative care is defined as an approach that improves the QoL of patients and their families and optimizing their QoL is the primary goal of palliative care. However, it is difficult to compare related studies due to several obstacles such as discrepancies in definitions for palliative medicine, lack of consensus on the central domains and diverse instruments. In this paper, we examined the current status of and challenges in QoL studies and discussed possible solutions. We are convinced this review will be helpful for further palliative care studies.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.14-22
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• 2018

Purpose: This study examined the effects of a hospice palliative education program for adults on their perception of hospice, attitude towards death, and meaning of life. Methods: This study was a quasi-experimental study with a non-equivalent control group design. Among 43 participants, 22 were assigned to the non-equivalent experimental group and 21 to the control group. The hospice palliative education program comprised 10 three-hour sessions, each given once a week. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, t-test and ${\chi}^2-test$ using SPSS version 20.0. Results: Significant differences between the experimental and control groups were observed in their perception of hospice (t=6.63, P<0.001), attitude towards death (t=2.36, P=0.023), and meaning of life (t=5.06, P<0.001). Conclusion: The results indicate that this education program could positively affect the perception of hospice, attitude toward death, and meaning of life in adults. More studies are warranted to explore the effects of this education program for various age groups so that it may help more people get positive understanding of hospice palliative care. The results suggest this program could help improve the negative perception of hospice, negative attitude towards death and meaning of life that are generally held by the public.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.70-75
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• 2016

Advanced incurable cancer patients receive palliative chemotherapy to prolong their life and improve quality of life. However, physicians should assess the timing to discontinue the treatment, especially near the final months of life, as palliative chemotherapy may accompany considerable toxicity. Even though there are no clear guidelines regarding the withdrawal timing for anticancer treatment in palliative setting, it is important clarify the issue for quality of care for advanced cancer patients. Here, we present two patients who received palliative chemotherapy for advanced colon cancer and non-small cell lung cancer, respectively. In both cases, it was jointly determined to stop palliative chemotherapy, and best efforts are made to relieve troublesome symptoms. The cases and up-to-date literature review will highlight the importance of the timing of discontinuation of cancer treatments when changes are being made to the health care system and hospice and palliative medicine is taking root in Korea.

• Korean Medical Education Review
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.146-152
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• 2020

Hospice and palliative care (HPC) education is an essential component of undergraduate medical education. Since February 4th, 2018, withholding and withdrawing life-sustaining treatment at the end of life (EOL) has been permitted in Korea as put forth by law, the "Act on Hospice and Palliative Care and Decisions on Life-Sustaining Treatment for Patients at the End of Life." Therefore, Korean medical schools have faced a challenge in providing comprehensive HPC education in order to better prepare medical students to be competent physicians in fulfilling their role in caring for patients at the EOL. There have been considerable variations in the evolution and organization of HPC education across Korean medical schools for the past 20 years. In 2016, all medical schools taught HPC curriculum as a separate course or integrated courses, with the most frequently taught topics including: delivering bad news, pain management, and the concept of palliative medicine. However, the content, time allocation, learning format, and clinical skills practice training of HPC education have been insufficient, inconsistent, and diverse. For this reason, we propose a HPC curriculum containing seven domains with 60 learning objectives in a course duration of over 20 hours based on the Palliative Education Assessment Tool (PEAT) as standard HPC curriculum. Furthermore, we recommend development of a national curriculum for HPC/EOL care education to be organized by the HPC board and managed under the accreditation criteria of the Korea Institute of Medical Education and Evaluation.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.42-50
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• 2023

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify barriers to effective conversations about advance care planning (ACP) and palliative care reported by health care and community-based service providers in Massachusetts, USA. Methods: This qualitative research analyzed open-ended responses to two survey questions, inquiring about perceived barriers to having conversations about ACP and palliative care with patients and consumers. Data were collected between November 2017 and June 2019 from nine organizations in Massachusetts, including health care provider organizations, health insurers, community-based organizations, and a nursing education institution. Two researchers reviewed and coded the responses and identified common themes inductively. Results: Across 142 responses, primary barriers to ACP included hesitation and lack of understanding and knowledge, discomfort and resistance among service providers, lack of staff knowledge, difficulties with followup, and differences in ACP policies across regions. Common barriers to palliative care were misconceptions about palliative care and lack of knowledge, service providers' lack of preparedness, and limited policy support and availability. Challenges relevant to both ACP and palliative care were fear and discomfort around serious illness discussions, lack of knowledge and awareness, discussions that occur too late, and cultural and language barriers. Conclusion: Health care practitioners and community-based professionals reported consumer-, service provider-, and system-level barriers to facilitating conversations about ACP and palliative care with patients experiencing serious illness. There is a need for more tools and support to strengthen service providers' ACP and palliative care competencies and to promote a structured approach to health care planning conversations.

• The Korean Society of Law and Medicine
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.77-107
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• 2008

In Republic of Chaina (Taiwan), Natural Death Act named "Anning Huauhe Yiliao Tiaoli" which means palliative and hospice care act was enacted in year of 2000. And enforced in the same year. Many scholars say that Taiwan's Act took Many U.S.A.'s acts such as 'Federal Patient Self-Determination Act 1990', 'California Natural Death Act 1976' and 'Washington Natural Death Act 1979' for a model. Taiwan's Act adopts a few outstanding systems - 'advance declarations' including 'living will' and 'durable power of attorney for health care', 'family-determination system' for a patient who is in a persistent unconscious state. This paper disusses this Act. 'The content is as follow: 1. A background of legislation. 2. The purpose of legislation. 3. The concept of terms. 4. Patient's self-determination. 5. Subrogated determination by family. 6. Keeping documents. 7. Punitive provision. 8. The relationship with euthanasia. 9. Controversial issues.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.120-127
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• 2007

Bereavement is the state of loss resulting from death. Grief is the emotional response associated with loss, intense and acute sorrow resulting from loss. Complicated grief represent a pathological outcome involving social, physical, emotional, cognitive, spiritual morbidity. The common psychiatric disorders associated complicated grief or abnormal grief responses include clinical depression, anxiety disorders, alcohol abuse or other substance abuse, and dependence, psychotic disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Grief tasks involve a series of stage or phases following an important loss that gradually permit adjustment and recovery. Three phases of grief involve phase 1 (walking the edges), phase 2 (entering the depths), and phase 3 (reconnecting the world). For intervention to be effective they need to be individually tailored to abnormal grief reaction or unresolved grief reaction. Clear understandings of complicated grief, abnormal responses, factors increasing risk after bereavement will often enable us to prevent psychiatric disorders in bereaved patients.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.115-121
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• 2009

Despite a recent increased nation's attention given to improving end-life care, we professionals need to be more critical and reflective on our realities surrounding hospice palliative care. The aim of this paper is to suggest that palliative care models can be used for patients/families in the last phase of life and examine whether they are appropriate for caring them in congruence with philosophy of hospice. The hospice experience model (HEM) of Eagan & Labyak and the developmental model of Byock are introduced and examined for their congruence with philosophy of hospice in applying to clinical practice. The HEM as a patient/family value-directed end of life care model emphasizes three principles; unique experience of patient/family, interactions/relationships among multiple dimensions of personhood and between family, and personal growth and development in the face of suffering through a life-completion. The developmental model stipulates dying as the last stage of living, a stage of life cycle in which patients/family may have growth through life-completion in multidimensional relationships of personhood. The model includes the developmental landmarks and tasks for life-completion as the framework to guide a means of professionals' to recognize their opportunity to grow. The landmarks and tasks include worldly and social affair, individual relationships, intrapersonal, and transcendent dimension. The models could work as appropriate palliative care models for patients/families in the last stage of living. The professionals need to be encouraged to apply the models to end of life care setting.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.171-184
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• 2023

Purpose: The study explored the meaning of experiences within a family art therapy process among terminal cancer patients and their families. Methods: Ten participants, including four terminal cancer patients currently admitted to the hospice ward at an inpatient hospice facility in S City and four caregiving family members, engaged in four cycles of family art therapy sessions. The sessions were conducted weekly or bi-weekly, and each lasted approximately 50 minutes. Results: Nine cross-case themes emerged: "feeling unfamiliar and intimidated by the idea of expressing my thoughts through art," "trying to accept the present and positively overcome sadness," "expressing hope through emotional bonds during the process of parting," "conveying and preserving personal and family beliefs," "feeling upset about family imbalances caused by deteriorating health," "valuing togetherness and striving for stability amidst the current challenges," "art as a medium of empowerment for patients and facilitator of family conversations, even amidst difficulties," "sharing a range of emotions-not just joy, but concerns and sorrow-through art," and "gratitude for art' s role in improving family communication and connection through artwork. Conclusion: The findings of this study lead to several conclusions. First, patients and their families faced psychological challenges when confronted with impending death, yet they strove to remain optimistic by seeking meaning in their struggles. Second, families practiced open and expressive communication, sharing a spectrum of complex emotions with one another. Third, even as the patient's condition worsened, resulting in family fatigue, their support and cohesion strengthened.

• Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.1-4
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• 2009

The aim of palliative radiotherapy (RT) is to control cancer-related local symptoms with minimal radiation reaction. About one third of all radiation treatments are given with palliative intent. Indications for RT in symptom palliation are as follows: Pain from bone metastasis, pressure symptom from brain and spinal cord, obstruction of bronchus, esophagus, superior vena cava and malignant cancer bleeding from bronchus, urinary tract, uterine cervix and rectum. In hospice palliative care, RT is very effective for symptom palliation and improvement of quality of life without influence on survival.