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What is palliative care and end-of-life care?
Palliative and end-of-life care are phases of a resident’s care that are often not well understood. Eldercare provides all residents with holistic, person-centred care throughout all phases of their life, including while receiving palliative and end-of-life care.
Palliative care
The World Health Organisation (2010) defines palliative care as:
An approach that improves the quality of life of individuals and their families facing the problems associated with life threatening illness, through the perception and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other problems, whether physical, psychosocial, and spiritual.
A small number of individuals may experience severe or complex problems as their condition advances. These may be physical symptoms or complex ethical dilemmas, family issues or psychological distress. Specialist palliative care teams do not usually take over the care of individuals but instead can provide advice on complex issues and support the GP and care team.
Curative or palliative care
- Curative care involves treatment that is aimed at identifying and treating the source of the illness and promoting recovery.
- Palliative care aims to provide comfort. It focuses on living well with worsening health by managing distressing symptoms, rather than curing and recovering from illness.
Program of Experience in the Palliative Approach (PEPA) 2020, Learning Guide for Nurses
Palliative care aims to improve the quality of life of a person with a life-limiting illness and support their families. The underlying philosophy of a palliative approach is a positive and open attitude towards death and dying.
Palliative care is not limited to the last weeks or days of life. It is a philosophy of care that may be appropriate many months before an individual passes away.
End-of-life care
End-of-life is the period of time when a resident is suffering from an illness that will be fatal and are nearing the end of their life. End-of-life care is the time within palliative care that is directed toward the care of a resident who is nearing end of life. Whereas palliative care may take place over many months or even years, end-of-life care is the care focused on the final days or weeks of life.
A person many experience some or all of the following when approaching death:
- Rapid day to day deterioration that is not reversible
- Becoming drowsier with lapses into unconsciousness
- Increasing loss of ability to swallow
- Refusing or unable to take food, fluids or oral medications
- Irreversible weight loss
- Profound weakness
- Changes in breathing patterns.
Program of Experience in the Palliative Approach (PEPA) 2020, Learning Guide for Nurses
The aim of end-of-life care is to provide care and treatment that maximises comfort and peace of mind for the resident, their family and loved ones.