A Japanese Region-wide Survey of the Knowledge, Difficulties and Self-reported Palliative Care Practices Among Nurses

Abstract

Knowledge, difficulty and self-reported practice for symptom management, particularly psychological symptoms, were insufficient, particularly in community hospitals. Education, expert support and adequate clinical experiences would help provide quality palliative care.

Instruments for assessing nurses’ palliative care knowledge and skills in specialised care setting: An integrative review

“…Knowledge about the efficacy of the drugs was linked to choosing the right medication according to the patient's symptoms, knowing the interactions between drugs and understanding the different possible routes for administering medication. Nurses needed knowledge of the side effects that drugs can cause, especially in situations where incorrect perceptions about adverse effects could hinder the selection of the most effective medication for the palliative care patient (Nakazawa et al, ; Choi et al, ; Sato et al, ; Iranmanesh et al, ; Abudari et al, ; Shimizu et al, ; Chover‐Sierra et al, , ; Schnell‐Hoehn et al, ; Nakazawa, Kato, Miyashita, Morita, & Kizawa, ).…”

“…Management of the physical symptoms consisted of four different subcategories: treatment of respiratory symptoms, treatment of gastrointestinal symptoms, pain evaluation and pain management. The knowledge and skills concerning the treatment of respiratory symptoms were mainly management of dyspnoea and the ability to treat agonal respiration (Nakazawa et al, , ; Desbiens & Fillion, ; Sato et al, ; Ly et al, ; Shimizu et al, ; Price et al, ). Gastrointestinal symptom management included care for dryness of the mouth and the treatment of nausea, vomiting and constipation (Desbiens & Fillion, ; Slatten et al, ; Price et al, ).…”

“…Gastrointestinal symptom management included care for dryness of the mouth and the treatment of nausea, vomiting and constipation (Desbiens & Fillion, ; Slatten et al, ; Price et al, ). The evaluation of patient's pain consisted of understanding the holistic nature of the pain and its connection to the life‐limiting illness and, furthermore, identifying the goals of pain management (Nakazawa et al, , ; Desbiens & Fillion, ; Choi et al, ; Sato et al, ; Chover‐Sierra et al, , ; Schnell‐Hoehn et al, ). Pain management required a knowledge of pharmacological treatments, as well as nonpharmacological and complementary interventions to alleviate pain (Desbiens & Fillion, ; Choi et al, ; Slatten et al, ; Price et al, ; Chover‐Sierra et al, , ; Schnell‐Hoehn et al, ; Montagnini et al, ).…”

“…The most commonly used knowledge test is the Palliative Care Quiz for Nursing (PCQN), which was used in ten of the studies. Knowledge in the knowledge instruments was assessed using items with “true” or “false” answer options (Ke, Chiu, Lo, & Hu, ; Kim et al, ; Choi et al, ; Autor et al, ; Abudari et al, ; Iranmanesh et al, ; Kim & Hwang, ; Shimizu et al, ; Chover‐Sierra et al, , ; Schnell‐Hoehn et al, ) or “right” or “wrong” answers (Nakazawa et al, , ; Sato et al, ; Arahata et al, ). The knowledge items mainly evaluated nurses’ knowledge of the philosophy, ethics and principles of palliative care; pain and symptom management; pharmacological care; psychological, social and cultural care; and care at the end of life (Table ).…”

Management of Delirium in Palliative Care: a Review

“…Use of the term delirium is infrequent in both hospital and hospice palliative care settings, and routine screening for delirium is rare [5]. Even clinicians working in high-risk settings admit low confidence in dealing with delirium [6]. Patients with hyperactive delirium may be recognized more often as they are more likely to attract medical attention.…”