Palliative care needs of patients with multiple sclerosis in southeast Iran

Abstract

Background Due to the chronic nature of multiple sclerosis, palliative care can play a significant role in improving the quality of life and well-being of the affected patients. An essential step for developing appropriate palliative care for these patients is to determine the types of palliative care necessary, from different points of view. Therefore, this study was conducted to compare the palliative care needs from the nurses’ and patients’ points of view in southeast Iran in 2017. Method This descriptive-analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on 154 nurses working in neurology wards of teaching hospitals associated with Kerman University of Medical Sciences and 132 patients with multiple sclerosis who were referred to these hospitals in southeast Iran. The data were collected using a questionnaire for assessing the palliative care needs of patients with multiple sclerosis. Pearson correlation coefficient, independent t-test, ANOVA, chi-square, and the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to examine the data. Results Both nurses and patients mentioned the palliative needs of patients with multiple sclerosis in terms of physical, social, spiritual, psychological, and economic dimensions, respectively, but the results showed that there was a significant difference between the two groups in all dimensions of palliative needs (P < 0.0001). Conclusion Given the differences in how patients and nurses prioritize palliative care needs, it is essential to consider the different dimensions of palliative needs of patients with multiple sclerosis.

Retracted Article: The Importance of Religion, Spirituality, and Spiritual Care in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

“…The National Service Framework for long-term conditions states that “people in the later stages of long-term neurological conditions are to receive a comprehensive range of palliative care services when they need them to control symptoms, offer pain relief, and meet their needs for personal, social, psychological, and spiritual support, in line with the principles of palliative care.” 30 Both nurses and patients mentioned the palliative needs of patients with MS in terms of physical, social, spiritual, psychological, and economic dimensions. 31 Rabiei et al 32 studied the perspectives and experiences of patients with MS regarding help-seeking behaviors. Four main themes emerged, including “reliance on Allah and recourse to the imams,” “striving to gain caring knowledge,” “a need for comprehensive support,” and “attention to spiritual care.” 32 In another study, four themes of MS patients' experiences in spiritual care include “restoration of identity essence and nature,” “disease as a factor for nearness to Allah,” “giving meaning to life,” and “disease as a facilitator for self-purification.” 33 Hajibabaei et al 34 reported that while no difference was observed for the control group, scores for meaning in life improved significantly for existential-spiritual intervention and cognitive-behavioral therapy in women with MS. Also, both mental and physical health dimensions of quality of life increased significantly in the two intervention groups.…”

“…30 Both nurses and patients mentioned the palliative needs of patients with MS in terms of physical, social, spiritual, psychological, and economic dimensions. 31 Rabiei et al 32 studied the perspectives and experiences of patients with MS regarding helpseeking behaviors. Four main themes emerged, including "reliance on Allah and recourse to the imams," "striving to gain caring knowledge," "a need for comprehensive support," and "attention to spiritual care."…”