Pain and health-related quality of life among cancer patients in final stage of life: a comparison between two palliative care teams

Abstract

Link to publication Citation for published version (APA): Boström, B., Hinic, H., Lundberg, D., & Fridlund, B. (2003). Pain and health-related quality of life among cancer patients in final stage of life: a comparison between two palliative care teams. Journal of Nursing Management, 11(3), 189-196. General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights.• Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research.• You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal . Cancer is a complex disease, characterized by both acute and chronic episodes (Aaronson et al. 1993). Treatment for cancer is the primary goal for both patients and care providers, together with a return to normal life, as far as possible. When cancer resists or recurs, goals may change to prolonging life and palliating symptoms, while maintaining as normal a life-style as possible (Kaasa et al. 1999, Given et al. 2000. Therefore health-related quality of life (HRQOL) assessment, as a supplement to documentation of symptom rates and adverse effects of treatment, has become more important in evaluating the consequences of care (Bowling 1995, Tamburini et al. 1996. The main goal is to achieve the best HRQOL for both the patient and his or her family (WHO 1990, Doyle et al. 1993. Pain control plays a key role in determining HRQOL and pain is experienced by A two-centred descriptive study was performed in order to describe and compare pain and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among cancer patients, in their final stage of life. The patients were cared for by either a nurse-led palliative care team I (PCT I) or a physician-led palliative care team II (PCT II). Forty-six consecutive, stratified patients (PCT I, n ¼ 21 and PCT II, n ¼ 25) participated. The medical outcomes study short form 36 (SF-36) was used for evaluating HRQOL and the Pain-O-Meter for assessing pain. Patients' pain intensity, pain quality and HRQOL showed no significant difference between the two groups PCT I and PCT II. The patients from PCT I had significantly longer survival time (P ¼ 0.017) than those from PCT II. The different composition of the teams being led by nurses or physicians is worth further research; both from the patient's and staff's viewpoint, there may also be cost-benefits worth examining.

A 1-year follow-up study of chest-pain patients with and without panic disorder

“…They did however not provide an answer. We found that the patients who still suffered from PD after nine years had very low HRQOL scores, in fact their scores were not much different from patients with terminal cancer (116). In addition they reported a high rate of suicidal ideation at follow-up as three of the 14 patients reported having had suicidal thoughts last week.…”

The Effect of Home Healthcare on Quality of Life in Patients Diagnosed With Gastrointestinal Cancer

“…The aim of home healthcare services is to provide effective pain management and teach about nonmedical therapeutic methods that can also be used for pain relief. In a study reported by Bostrom, Hinic, Lundberg, and Fridlund (2003) in patients who had palliative care, there was no significant difference between the patients who had care under the guidance of nurses and those who had it under the guidance of a physician; however, it was discovered that the life span of the group who had care under the guidance of nurses was longer.…”

Comparison of Three Pain Assessment Tools in Oncological Patients during Palliative Chemotherapy-Implications for Clinical Practice

“…In the present study, correlations of pain assessment on the VAS with the QOL dimension " Bodily pain " were signifi cant ( • ▶ Table 3 ). Pain and QOL among cancer patients in fi nal stage of life, who were treated by two diff erent palliative care teams, were assessed by Bostr ö m et al using a VAS (ranging from 0 to 10 cm) and the SF-36 Health Survey [20] . They reported mean values of 2.9 ± 3 cm (team 1) and 3.1 ± 3 cm (team 2) on the VAS at time of interview and mean values of 54.3 ± 26.1 (team 1) and 46.9 ± 319.6 (team 2) measured by the QOL subscale " Bodily pain " [20] .…”