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Modules:
Introduction
1. Advance Care Planning
2. Communicating Bad News
3. Whole Patient Assessment
4. Pain Management
5. Assisted Suicide Debate
6. Anxiety, Delirium
7. Goals of Care
8. Sudden Illness
9. Medical Futility
10. Common Symptoms
11. Withholding Treatment
12. Last Hours of Living
13. Cultural Issues
14. Religion, Spirituality
15. Legal Issues
16. Social and Psychological
More About:
Hospice Care
Clergy and Faith Communities
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Goals of Assessment in End-of-Life Care
The Physician's Role in Whole-Patient Assessment
Objectives of this Module
Goals of Assessment in End-of-Life Care
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Patient assessment in end-of-life care differs from other clinical assessments in that its goal is to permit the relief of suffering
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Effective implementation of management strategies to relieve suffering in end-of-life care must be based on a comprehensive assessment of the whole patient
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Assessment must recognize that patients’ experience (and parents’ experience if the patient is a child) of illness is multi-dimensional
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The Physician's Role in Whole-Patient Assessment
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Care for the whole patient, not just the disease
- Acknowledge the patient’s experience
- Analyze the causes of suffering
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Offer information and practical advice -- the physician's role includes aspects of:
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Introduce sources of support
- Promote the role of patient advocate
- Members of the interdisciplinary team (such as nurses, social workers, chaplains, child life specialists, and others) along with the family will share the responsibilities of patient advocacy and implement the treatment plan
- The physician need not, and should not, bear this responsibility alone
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Objectives of this Module
The objectives of this module are to identify and know how to assess the areas of:
- Illness/treatment summary
- Physical
- Psychological
- Decision-making
- Communication and information sharing
- Social
- Spiritual
- Practical needs
- Anticipatory planning for death
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