Deficits in palliative care skills need to be addressed

THE NEED for communication skills training for staff working with families in palliative care in Ireland has been identified by a new study which was presented at a major European conference.

Dr Margaret Clifford, specialist registrar in palliative care at Marymount Hospice and St Patrick’s Hospital, Cork, was among a number of Irish physicians who are presenting papers at the 12th Congress of the European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) in Lisbon, Portugal, last weekend.

Dr Clifford pointed out that the value of formal family meetings as a way of helping good communication between staff and patients’ families was widely acknowledged.

These meetings take place on a regular basis between the palliative care team and the patient’s family with or without the patient present, but always with the patient’s informed consent.

Her survey of two specialist palliative care units, Marymount Hospice/St Patrick’s Hospital, Cork, and Milford Care Centre, Limerick, identified practice deficits in how family meetings were being conducted.

She said it was clear from the study that there was room for improvement in relation to family meetings and there appeared to be a lack of confidence and training, both formal and informal.

“The vast majority of staff really see the value of meeting with families on a regular basis to discuss various aspects of the patients’ care, but they want to ensure that these meetings are conducted in the best possible way with the most satisfactory outcome for patients and families,” she said.

“Communication skills training was the number one priority identified by staff and this will inform the way we move forward in providing the service.”

Mary Ainscough, chief executive, Irish Association for Palliative Care, explained that palliative care did not mean death was imminent – a patient could have it over a very long period of time from the moment of diagnosis right through to end of life.

Palliative care also provided support to the patient’s family and friends.

“Palliative care is an approach to care that manages pain and other symptoms when a person is facing a very serious illness or condition that’s not likely to be cured,” she said.

“It’s a holistic approach that addresses the psychological, spiritual and social elements of being faced with a very serious incurable illness and the focus is to make the patient’s life as good as it can be.”

Ms Ainscough said research showed that patients who received palliative care earlier lived longer and had a better quality of life.

A full palliative care service should be available to everybody with an incurable illness or condition, not just to cancer patients, she stated.