End Of Life Advanced Directive Discussion
Who should have the difficult discussion of the goals of
care for a terminal patient? With whom does this responsibility lie? What
course of action should be taken?
1. As the primary care physician, discuss the goals of care
with the patient yourself.
2. Recommend that the oncology team discuss the goals of
care with the patient.
3. Refer the patient to a palliative care physician who will
discuss the goals of care with the patient.
To aid in your decision-making each of these approaches is
defended in a short essay by an expert in the field.
N.B. This is a an instructive article that will help
patients and their care-givers.
The most useful comments came from palliative care
physician, Diane Meier: In
an ideal world, every clinician caring for terminal patients would have the
training and the team support to care for their patients throughout the course
of their illness, especially during its most difficult and challenging phases. Most primary care
clinicians and specialists don't have time to manage complex symptoms, as well
as emotional, practical, spiritual, and family needs, amid the escalating
productivity requirements characterizing medical practice in the United
States. Most terminal patients’ care
will be improved through access to specialist-level palliative care.
No comments:
Post a Comment