Demystifying Palliative Care
- Kirsten White
- Oct 6
- 6 min read
Demystifying Palliative Care: Understanding Its Role and Importance
When someone we love is facing a serious or life-limiting illness, the conversation often turns to how we can best support their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Palliative care is a term that is sometimes misunderstood, often confused with hospice care, or seen as something that only comes into play at the very end of life. In this blog post, we’ll explore what palliative care truly is, what it involves, and how it can benefit both patients and their families, dispelling any myths and helping to clarify its crucial role in holistic healthcare.
What is Palliative Care?
Palliative care is specialized medical care focused on providing relief from the symptoms, pain, and stress of a serious illness—whatever the diagnosis may be. Unlike curative treatment, which aims to cure or eliminate the illness, palliative care works alongside other treatments to improve the quality of life for both the patient and their family.
It is available to people of any age and at any stage of a serious illness, and it can be provided alongside curative treatment. The goal of palliative care is not to hasten or postpone death, but to help the person live as comfortably as possible for as long as possible.
Palliative Care vs. Hospice Care: What’s the Difference?
One of the main sources of confusion about palliative care arises from its similarity to hospice care, a term that many people associate with end-of-life care. While both types of care focus on comfort and quality of life, there is a key difference:
Palliative Care: Palliative care can be provided at any stage of a serious illness, from the moment of diagnosis through treatment and into end-of-life care. It is intended to manage pain and symptoms and improve the overall well-being of the patient, no matter how long they may live.
Hospice Care: Hospice care is a specific type of palliative care for individuals who are nearing the end of their lives (typically with a prognosis of six months or less). Hospice focuses on comfort care when curative treatment is no longer effective or desired.
How Does Palliative Care Work?
Palliative care is provided by a team of doctors, nurses, social workers, chaplains, and other specialists who work together to address the physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects of care. Here’s how it can make a difference:
1. Pain and Symptom Management
Pain control: One of the most critical aspects of palliative care is helping patients manage pain and other symptoms like nausea, difficulty breathing, fatigue, and insomnia. Palliative care specialists work to find the right medications and strategies to keep patients as comfortable as possible.
Symptom relief: In addition to pain, palliative care addresses other distressing symptoms such as shortness of breath, loss of appetite, constipation, or anxiety. This comprehensive approach allows patients to feel more in control of their comfort.
2. Emotional and Psychological Support
Emotional well-being: A serious illness can often lead to feelings of anxiety, depression, or fear. Palliative care professionals provide counseling and emotional support to help patients cope with the psychological burden of their illness.
Family support: Palliative care also provides support for families, offering guidance, education, and counselling to help them understand the patient’s needs and how to navigate this challenging time together.
3. Spiritual and Social Care
Spiritual care: For many, spirituality plays an important role in coping with illness. Palliative care teams include chaplains or spiritual counselors who help patients and their families explore spiritual concerns and provide comfort in accordance with their faith traditions.
Social support: Social workers in palliative care help with practical matters such as coordinating care, addressing financial concerns, and ensuring that patients and families have access to resources.
4. Coordination of Care
Holistic approach: Palliative care teams coordinate care with the patient’s other doctors, ensuring that all aspects of treatment, from curative therapies to comfort measures, work together to benefit the patient. This coordinated care helps avoid fragmented treatment plans and ensures that all aspects of the person’s well-being are addressed.
Personalized care plans: Every patient’s needs are different. Palliative care involves working closely with the patient and their family to develop a personalized care plan that aligns with the patient’s values, goals, and preferences.
Why is Palliative Care Important?
Despite being a form of care that improves quality of life, many people are still unfamiliar with the benefits of palliative care, or may delay seeking it until the patient’s condition has progressed significantly. Here are some reasons why early access to palliative care can be life-changing:
1. Improves Quality of Life
Increased comfort: By managing symptoms such as pain and fatigue, palliative care helps patients feel more comfortable, allowing them to engage in life and enjoy time with their loved ones.
Enhanced emotional well-being: Addressing the emotional and psychological aspects of illness reduces feelings of isolation, anxiety, and depression, leading to a better overall quality of life.
2. Helps Patients and Families Make Informed Decisions
Clarifying treatment options: Palliative care provides a space for open and honest conversations between patients, families, and healthcare providers. It can help clarify treatment options, address concerns about the future, and ensure that decisions align with the patient’s wishes and values.
Advance care planning: Palliative care supports patients and families in making decisions about future care, including advanced directives, Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders, and end-of-life preferences.
3. Reduces Hospital Visits and Stress
Reduced hospital readmissions: Because palliative care manages symptoms effectively at home or in outpatient settings, it can reduce the need for frequent hospital visits, emergency room trips, or rehospitalizations.
Improved patient satisfaction: Patients who receive palliative care often report greater satisfaction with their care, as they feel their emotional, physical, and spiritual needs are being addressed.
4. Supports Families and Caregivers
Caregiver relief: Caring for a loved one with a serious illness can be physically and emotionally exhausting. Palliative care provides support for caregivers, offering respite care and helping them navigate the complexities of caregiving.
Ongoing support: Palliative care isn’t just for the patient—it supports the entire family unit. Family members receive counseling, guidance, and practical assistance throughout the caregiving journey.
Common Misconceptions About Palliative Care
Despite its many benefits, palliative care remains misunderstood. Here are a few common myths and the truths that demystify them:
Myth: Palliative care is only for people who are dying.
Fact: Palliative care is for anyone with a serious illness, regardless of prognosis. It focuses on enhancing quality of life and can be offered alongside curative treatments.
Myth: Palliative care means giving up on curative treatments.
Fact: Palliative care can complement curative treatments. It works alongside other medical treatments to improve comfort and well-being while you undergo treatments aimed at curing or controlling the disease.
Myth: Palliative care is only for cancer patients.
Fact: Palliative care is for anyone with a serious illness, including heart disease, kidney failure, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and more. It is designed to help patients with a wide range of conditions.
Myth: Palliative care is the same as hospice care.
Fact: While both palliative and hospice care focus on comfort and quality of life, palliative care is available at any stage of illness, whereas hospice care is typically for those nearing the end of life.
How to Access Palliative Care
If you or a loved one is facing a serious illness, you can ask your doctor or healthcare provider about palliative care.
In Alberta you can find palliative care information here:
Many hospitals, outpatient clinics, and hospices offer palliative care services. Some organizations also offer home-based palliative care, which can be a more comfortable and convenient option for patients and families.
A Holistic Approach to Care
Palliative care offers a compassionate, holistic approach to managing the challenges that come with serious illness. By providing relief from symptoms, addressing emotional and spiritual needs, and supporting families, palliative care improves quality of life at every stage of illness. It is a service that can be integrated into treatment plans at any time and is designed to help patients live as fully and comfortably as possible.
Understanding what palliative care is and what it isn’t can empower patients and families to make informed decisions and take advantage of the full range of support available to them. By demystifying this important form of care, we can help more people benefit from the comfort, relief, and dignity that palliative care provides.
Lark and Raven Wellness offers palliative care support in the form of counselling for those with a terminal illness and people with chronic illnesses for the entire family at any age or stage.
Further Resources:
Comments