Vim & Vigor - Spring 2009 - (Page 54)

palliative taking action when illness advances by carla carwile year has passed since Laurie DeLalio, R.N., M.S., CNS CT, ACHPN, helped St. Anthony Hospitals launch its palliative care program. Now the advanced practice nurse is at St. Anthony Central Hospital full time, helping make life less painful and more peaceful for those dealing with advanced illness. Unlike traditional hospice services that focus solely on comfort care, palliative care is interdisciplinary care offered simultaneously with all other appropriate medical treatment. The palliative care nurse communicates with families, coordinates care across settings and provides comprehensive discharge planning. “I have the privilege of interfacing with patients and families at a very emotional and upsetting time in their lives,” says Laurie. “These people are in pain— and not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually as they deal with fear and their sense of loss. Our task is to be able to distinguish these different levels and address the physical pain first. Then we can help them deal with the other layers.” While family members’ desires and fears are openly acknowledged, Laurie works “to refocus everything back to the patient. Would this individual want to be kept alive on life support? What has this person valued in life? We ‘reframe’ everything.” This helps the family identify the plan that will best meet the patient’s needs, be it hospice care, hospice at home or a nursing facility. “Sometimes they want to continue treatment,” Laurie notes. “In those instances, we can refer them to resources for palliative care in the community.” care what is palliative care? It is an approach to care that improves the quality of life of patients and their families as they face the problems accompanying lifethreatening illnesses. Palliative care: • Provides relief from pain and other distressing symptoms. • Affirms life and regards dying as a normal process. • Intends neither to hasten or postpone death. • Integrates the psychological and spiritual aspects of patient care. • Offers a support system to help patients live as actively as possible until death. • Offers a support system to help the family cope during the patient’s illness and in their own bereavement. A • Uses a team approach to address the needs of patients and their families, including bereavement counseling, if indicated. • Will enhance quality of life, and may also positively influence the course of illness. • Is applicable early in the course of illness, in conjunction with other therapies that are intended to prolong life, such as chemotherapy or radiation therapy, and includes those investigations needed to better understand and manage distressing clinical complications. Source: World Health Organization 54 vim & vigor • sp rin g 2 009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Vim & Vigor - Spring 2009

Vim & Vigor
Contents
CEO Letter
For Your health
The 2.5-Centimeter Surgery
Cracking the Case
Domino Effect
No More Excuses
A Grand Plan
Home, Clean Home
RX for Success
Your Lovely Bones (and Joints)
Freeze, Food!
Employment Assistance
When Memory Fails
Community Connections
EMS Training
Pallitive Care
Award-Winning Care
Ask the Experts

Vim & Vigor - Spring 2009