Abstract

Background

The extension of palliative care services to meet the needs of patients with chronic non-malignant life-limiting conditions faces misconceptions amongst healthcare professionals. A study of prevailing perceptions of healthcare professionals on this wider palliative care service was thus conducted to identify current obstacles, guide the education of local healthcare professionals and improve service accessibility.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was carried out at the Singapore General Hospital. An anonymised and close-ended online questionnaire was disseminated to 120 physicians and 500 nurses in the Department of Internal Medicine. The online survey tool focused on participant demographics; perceptions of palliative care and its perceived benefits; roles and indications; and attitudes and behaviours towards palliative care referrals.

Results

Forty four physicians and 156 nurses suggested that care of terminally ill patients with chronic non-malignant life-limiting conditions are compromised by concerns over the role of palliative care in non-cancer care and lapses in their prognostication and communication skills. Respondents also raised concerns about their ability to confront sociocultural issues and introduce palliative care services to patients and their families.

Conclusions

Gaps in understanding and the ability of nurses and physicians to communicate end of life issues, introduce palliative care services to patients and their families and confront sociocultural issues suggest the need for a longitudinal training program. With similar concerns likely prevalent in other clinical settings within this island nation, a concerted national education program targeting obstacles surrounding effective palliative care should be considered.

Details

Title
Perceptions of healthcare professionals towards palliative care in internal medicine wards: a cross-sectional survey
Author
Tay, Jason; Compton, Scott; Phua, Gillian; Zhuang, Qingyuan; Neo, Shirlyn; Lee, Guozhang; Wijaya, Limin; Chiam, Min  VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Woong, Natalie; Krishna, Lalit
Pages
1-8
Section
Research article
Publication year
2021
Publication date
2021
Publisher
BioMed Central
e-ISSN
1472684X
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2553227154
Copyright
© 2021. This work is licensed under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.