Experiences of Older Women With Cancer Receiving Hospice Care: Significance for Physical Therapy

Abstract

Background and Purpose. The number of older adults with cancer is growing, increasing the need for professionals who are able to meet these patients' special needs. In palliative care settings, physical therapists strive to promote quality of life. Minimal research exists, however, to guide therapists working with patients with terminal illness. The purpose of this study was to gain knowledge that can be used by physical therapists to more effectively assess and treat older people with cancer who are receiving hospice care. Subjects and Methods. A qualitative single-case study with replication was conducted with 3 older women with cancer who are receiving hospice care. Interview data were analyzed using grounded theory techniques. Results. Four themes emerged as central to the experience of the informants: social relationships, spirituality, outlook on mortality, and meaningful physical activity. Conclusion and Discussion. In addition to maintaining physical function, physical therapists, who attend to nonphysical as well as physical aspects of care, may foster social cohesion, help maximize life's meaning, and support stabilizing strategies of older women with cancer who receive hospice care. [Mackey KM, Sparling JW. Experiences of older women with cancer receiving hospice care: significance for physical therapy. Phys Ther. 2000;80:459 -468.]

Patient-Centered Insights on Treatment Decision Making and Living with Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Other Hematologic Cancers

“…However, many patients also detailed their acceptance of their AML diagnosis and how they strive to have a positive disease outlook and retain a sense of normality in their everyday lives. Across patients with hematologic cancer, there was a stronger appreciation for living in the present, and both patients and caregivers expressed gratitude for having remaining time with their loved ones [34,[42][43][44].…”

“…As reported in some articles, patients would often set goals to cope with the uncertainty of the disease, and these goals usually revolved around children or grandchildren. Many patients expressed their gratitude at having more time with their family, being able to attend family events, and/or reaching a life milestone [39,41,42].…”

Integrating Function‐Directed Treatments into Palliative Care

“…Several case series described significant improvement in pre to post PT comparisons among hospice patients [21‐23]. More recently, a randomized controlled trial demonstrated benefits in symptom reduction, including fatigue, among hospice residents randomized to PT versus usual care [24].…”

Entwicklung und Einsatz der Physiotherapie in der Palliativversorgung - Eine systematische Literaturanalyse

“…Neben Beiträgen zu den speziellen Bedarfslagen älterer Patienten mit malignen Erkrankungen [45,120] widmen sich Publikationen neueren Datums zur Physiotherapie in der Palliativmedizin dem Nutzen physiotherapeutischer Interventionen in der Geriatrie [96,105]. Auch finden sich erste Leitlinien für die Versorgung älterer Palliativpatienten in unterschiedlichen Versorgungsbereichen [135,136].…”

“…Allerdings finden sich in den vorliegenden Publikationen keine belastbaren Daten über die Realisierung der Einbindung von Physiotherapeuten in das multiprofessionelle Team palliativmedizinischer Einrichtungen. Empirische Beiträge zur Rolle und Positionierung der Physiotherapie in der Palliativmedizin beschränken sich weitestgehend auf Fallstudien und Erfahrungsberichte[16,47,96,107,110,120,133]. Sie beziehen sich auf den Arbeitsalltag, Routinen und Kooperation, Kooperationserfordernisse sowie auf die Umsetzung physiotherapeutischer Maßnahmen in der Palliativmedizin.…”