Interdisciplinary Education in Palliative Care: A Bold Strategy, Solution and Political Statement

2012 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 375-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Breiddal
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Care Setting ◽  
Ways Of Knowing ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Interdisciplinary Education ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Palliative Care Setting ◽  
Political Statement ◽  
Health Canada

Harsh experience reveals that preparing the interdisciplinary palliative care team members cannot be accomplished by sequestering students in single-discipline training. By combining different ways of knowing and being that are the underlying tenets of interdisciplinary education, we must—by design, curriculum, teaching strategies, and research—reflect the nature and practice of the interdisciplinary palliative care team. This kind of education is an imperative if we are going to meet our own goals to provide physical, emotional, and spiritual care to people at end-of-life. As educators, we must take to heart the responsibility to prepare students with the skills to apply their knowledge within the context of the palliative care setting, as practiced by the interdisciplinary team. This position is supported in the literature, is recommended by Health Canada, and is affirmed by experience in the field.

Collective soul: The spirituality of an interdisciplinary palliative care team

2006 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
SHANE SINCLAIR ◽  
SHELLEY RAFFIN ◽  
JOSE PEREIRA ◽  
NANCY GUEBERT
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Palliative Care ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Cancer Center ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Spiritual Journeys ◽  
Common Goals

Objective:Although spirituality as it relates to patients is gaining increasing attention, less is known about how health care professionals (HCP) experience spirituality personally or collectively in the workplace. This study explores the collective spirituality of an interdisciplinary palliative care team, by studying how individuals felt about their own spirituality, whether there was a shared sense of a team spirituality, how spirituality related to the care the team provided to patients and whether they felt that they provided spiritual care.Methods:A qualitative autoethnographic approach was used. The study was conducted in a 10-bed Tertiary Palliative Care Unit (TPCU) in a large acute-care referral hospital and cancer center. Interdisciplinary team members of the TPCU were invited to participate in one-to-one interviews and/or focus groups. Five interviews and three focus groups were conducted with a total of 20 participants.Results:Initially participants struggled to define spirituality. Concepts of spirituality relating to integrity, wholeness, meaning, and personal journeying emerged. For many, spirituality is inherently relational. Others acknowledged transcendence as an element of spirituality. Spirituality was described as being wrapped in caring and often manifests in small daily acts of kindness and of love, embedded within routine acts of caring. Palliative care served as a catalyst for team members' own spiritual journeys. For some participants, palliative care represented a spiritual calling. A collective spirituality stemming from common goals, values, and belonging surfaced.Significance of results:This was the first known study that focused specifically on the exploration of a collective spirituality. The culture of palliative care seems to foster spiritual reflection among health care professionals both as individuals and as a whole. While spirituality was difficult to describe, it was a shared experience often tangibly present in the provision of care on all levels.

Interdisciplinary Palliative Care Teams

2019 ◽  
pp. 89-97
Author(s):  
Polly Mazanec ◽  
Rebekah Reimer ◽  
Jessica Bullington ◽  
Patrick J. Coyne ◽  
Herman Harris ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Medical Center ◽  
Academic Medical Center ◽  
Interdisciplinary Team ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Patient Centered ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Palliative Care Teams

This chapter defines the composition and roles of interdisciplinary team members on a palliative care team. The team has the responsibility to deliver patient-centered, family-focused care based on the recommendations from the National Consensus Project Guidelines for Quality Palliative Care. Within this chapter, interdisciplinary team members from an academic medical center discuss their respective roles on the team and describe how these roles supported a patient and family case study. The chapter provides an overview of the four most common models of palliative care delivery: inpatient consult teams, with or without a palliative care unit; ambulatory palliative care teams; community-based palliative care teams; and hospice teams. An introduction to essential considerations in the development of a palliative care team and the important components for maintaining a healthy, functional team are described.

Confidence and skills for cystic fibrosis end-of-life care

2020 ◽  
pp. bmjspcare-2020-002274
Author(s):  
Eva Harris-Skillman ◽  
Stephen Chapman ◽  
Aoife Lowney ◽  
Mary Miller ◽  
William Flight
Keyword(s):  
Cystic Fibrosis ◽  
Palliative Care ◽  
End Of Life ◽  
End Of Life Care ◽  
Further Education ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Life Care ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Palliative Care Teams

ObjectivesOptimal cystic fibrosis (CF) end-of-life care (EOLC) is a challenge. There is little formal guidance about who should deliver this and how CF multi-disciplinary teams should interact with specialist palliative care. We assessed the knowledge, experience and preparedness of both CF and palliative care professionals for CF EOLC.MethodsAn electronic questionnaire was distributed to all members of the Oxford adult CF and palliative care teams.Results35 of a possible 63 members responded (19 CF team; 16 palliative care). Levels of preparedness were low in both groups. Only 11% of CF and 19% of palliative care team members felt fully prepared for EOLC in adult CF. 58% of CF members had no (21%) or minimal (37%) general palliative care training. Similarly, 69% of the palliative care team had no CF-specific training. All respondents desired additional education. CF team members preferred further education in general EOLC while palliative care team members emphasised a need for more CF-specific knowledge.ConclusionsFew members of either the CF or palliative care teams felt fully prepared to deliver CF EOLC and many desired additional educations. They expressed complementary knowledge gaps, which suggests both could benefit from increased collaboration and sharing of specialist knowledge.

scholarly journals Team Well-being and Resilience Practices in Hospice and Palliative Care

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 33
Author(s):  
Glen Isamu Komatsu
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Organizational Support ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Reflection Process ◽  
Over Time

High functioning, resilient teams do not happen by chance. Teams, similar to individuals, need to be educated, nurtured and formed over time, by a consistent vision and process.  With proper team formation, the compassionate care of patients, families and colleagues can be developed, modeled and reinforced. Self-compassion is another focus to help caregivers cope with the stresses of the work and mitigate against burnout. The primary intervention which will be discussed is a regularly scheduled reflection process, e.g. 30 minutes weekly or 90 minutes monthly, with a pediatric hospice team, an inpatient palliative care team and an outpatient palliative care team. The reflection process incorporates mindful meditation, journaling, listening exercises, individual and group reflection to encourage and practice self-awareness, self-reflection, greater emotional intelligence and leadership skills. Specific tools employed include the Search Inside Yourself © Program, books by various authors, selected music, videos and personal journals. Qualitative feedback from team members, patient, family and colleague satisfaction scores has been positive. Buy-in from all team members, initially, was difficult, but over time, all team members have recognized the value of the process and have incorporated the exercises not only in their work, but in their personal lives and other roles/jobs. Other key success factors are organizational support for time for this process and individual champions to develop and lead the reflective process. The workshop will include a demonstration of exercises used in team reflections with learner participation. 

scholarly journals Perceptions of Specialty Palliative Care and Its Role in Pediatric Stem Cell Transplant: A Multi-Disciplinary Qualitative Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Griffin Collins ◽  
Hannah Beaman ◽  
Alvin Ho ◽  
Michelle Hermiston ◽  
Harvey Cohen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Stem Cell ◽  
Stem Cell Transplant ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Cell Transplant ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Care Integration ◽  
Palliative Care Consultation ◽  
Care Consultation

Background Consultation of specialty palliative care remains uncommon in pediatric stem cell transplant (SCT) despite growing evidence that early integration of palliative care improves outcomes in patients with advanced cancers or undergoing SCT. Little is known about how multidisciplinary pediatric SCT teams perceive palliative care and its role in SCT. Procedure We conducted semi-structured interviews of members of a multi-disciplinary SCT team to understand their perceptions of palliative care, how specialty palliative care is integrated into SCT, and to identify barriers to increased integration. Eligible participants included physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, social workers, and child life specialists. Data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Results Four major themes were identified. First, SCT team members held a favorable perception of the palliative care team. Second, participants desired increased palliative care integration in SCT. Third, participants believed that the palliative care team had insufficient resources to care for the large number of SCT patients which led to the SCT team limiting palliative care consultation. And, finally, the lack of a standardized palliative care consultation process prevented greater integration of palliative care in SCT. Conclusions SCT team members held a favorable perception of palliative care and saw a role for greater palliative care integration throughout the SCT course. We identified modifiable barriers to greater palliative care integration. SCT teams who desire greater palliative care integration may adapt and implement an existing model of palliative care integration in order to improve standardization and increase integration of specialty palliative care in SCT.

scholarly journals Narrative and Palliative Care Team Identity Formation

2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Denise Hess
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Identity Formation ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Quality Care ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Spiritual Needs ◽  
Team Identity ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Palliative Care Teams

Palliative care is whole person care that attends to the physical, psychosocial, and spiritual needs of persons with a serious or life-limiting illness. This care is provided by a team of clinicians from several disciplines including physicians, nurses, social workers, and chaplains. The palliative care team functions as a dynamic system whose ability to provide quality care is dependent upon the ability of the team members to form and maintain an ongoing collaborative alliance. This alliance requires that team members maintain dual commitments to both the care receivers and to their fellow team members. Just as persons with illness express the human propensity toward meaning making in the face of suffering, so palliative care teams thrive when they are supported in reflective processes that enhance their ability to find meaning in their work. Creation of and attention to team narratives and their role in team identity formation can enhance team members’ flourishing by placing team identity in the context of a larger story. Narratives of rescuing and fixing foster a sense of control and expertise while narratives of containing and healing nurture attention to mindful presence and human-to-human encounter.

scholarly journals Evaluation of the Measuring and Improving Quality in Palliative Care Survey

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (12) ◽  
pp. e834-e843 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sydney M. Dy ◽  
Ritu Sharma ◽  
Kamini Kuchinad ◽  
Zi-Rou Liew ◽  
Nebras Abu Al Hamayel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Internal Consistency ◽  
Content Validity ◽  
Quality Measurement ◽  
Internal Consistency Reliability ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Nurse Specialist ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Score Range

Purpose: To evaluate the reliability, content validity, and variation among sites of a survey to assess facilitators and barriers to quality measurement and improvement in palliative care programs. Methods: We surveyed a sample of diverse US and Canadian palliative care programs and conducted postcompletion discussion groups. The survey included constructs addressing educational support and training, communication, teamwork, leadership, and prioritization for quality measurement and improvement. We tested internal consistency reliability, described variation among sites, and reported descriptive feedback on content validity. Results: Of 103 respondents in 11 sites, the most common roles were attending physician (38.9%) and nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, or physician assistant (16.5%). Internal consistency reliability was acceptable (Cronbach’s α = .70 to .99) for all but one construct. Results varied across sites by more than 1 point on the 1 to 5 scales between the 10th and 90th percentiles of sites for two constructs in recognition and focus on quality measurement (score range by site, 1.7 to 4.8), one construct in teamwork (score range, 3.1 to 4.6), and five constructs in quality improvement (score range, 1.8 to 4.6). In descriptive content validity evaluation, respondents described the survey as an opportunity for assessing quality initiatives and discussing potential improvements, particularly improvements in communication, training, and engagement of team members regarding program quality efforts. Conclusion: This survey to assess palliative care team perspectives on barriers and facilitators for quality measurement and improvement demonstrated reliability, content validity, and initial evidence of variation among sites. Our findings highlight how palliative care team members’ perspectives may be valuable to plan, evaluate, and monitor quality-of-care initiatives.

scholarly journals Parental experiences with a paediatric palliative care team: A qualitative study

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (10) ◽  
pp. 956-963 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa M Verberne ◽  
Antoinette YN Schouten-van Meeteren ◽  
Diederik K Bosman ◽  
Derk A Colenbrander ◽  
Charissa T Jagt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Palliative Care ◽  
Palliative Care Team ◽  
Care Team ◽  
Multidisciplinary Teams ◽  
Team Members ◽  
Paediatric Palliative Care ◽  
Practical Support ◽  
Qualitative Interview Study ◽  
Palliative Care Teams

Background: Parents of children with a life-limiting disease have to rely on themselves at home while adequate paediatric palliative care is lacking. In several countries, paediatric palliative care teams are introduced to ensure continuity and quality of care and to support the child and the family. Yet, little is known about how parents experience such multidisciplinary teams. Aim: To obtain insight into the support provided by a new paediatric palliative care team from the parents’ perspective. Design: An interpretative qualitative interview study using thematic analysis was performed. Setting/participants: A total of 47 single or repeated interviews were undertaken with 42 parents of 24 children supported by a multidisciplinary paediatric palliative care team located at a university children’s hospital. The children suffered from malignant or non-malignant diseases. Results: In advance, parents had limited expectations of the paediatric palliative care team. Some had difficulty accepting the need for palliative care for their child. Once parents experienced what the team achieved for their child and family, they valued the team’s involvement. Valuable elements were as follows: (1) process-related aspects such as continuity, coordination of care, and providing one reliable point of contact; (2) practical support; and (3) the team members’ sensitive and reliable attitude. As a point of improvement, parents suggested more concrete clarification upfront of the content of the team’s support. Conclusion: Parents feel supported by the paediatric palliative care team. The three elements valued by parents probably form the structure that underlies quality of paediatric palliative care. New teams should cover these three valuable elements.

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