Palliative care for oncological patients in the terminal stage

Abstract

Modern public opinion is such that, despite the achievements of the current level of medicine, the diagnosis of cancer (regardless of the stage of the disease) is perceived as a death sentence, which carries with it a quick end of life. However, this is not the case, because a malignant neoplasm detected in the early stages is treatable, and with regard to patients with neglected forms of cancer, even here, all is not lost and hopeless. There is a complex of palliative measures aimed at alleviating the suffering of the patient, preserving his human dignity, identifying his needs and maintaining the quality of life in its final period. On the other hand, the task of palliative care includes providing social and psychological support to the patient's family. With cancer, in the terminal stage, the patient becomes the cause of family dysfunction, because it causes a colossal moral shock for loved ones and relatives, and it also brings economic, social and psychological difficulties, which can lead to a decrease in the quality of life of the entire family. Relatives who sympathize with the patient are often in a state of helplessness, not knowing how to act in such situations, resorting to various options for solving the problem, but remain in a hopeless situation. Relatives of the patient, often being in a state of deep moral disorder, take a heavy burden on their shoulders, not knowing how to properly care for the patient, where it is better for the patient to be: at home or under the supervision of doctors and nurses, what to do if the patient is suffering from pain? To solve these problems and bring specialized palliative care closer to each patient can be created a multidisciplinary team that would have the opportunity to go to the home of a seriously ill cancer patient. Minimum team composition: 1 palliative care specialist, 1 oncologist, district doctor, 1 nurse, 1 psychologist, 1 social worker, 1 volunteer, 1 lawyer. If necessary, other narrow specialists can be included and a priest .