Pain Management in Hospice Patients: Concepts and Theories

Pain Management in Hospice Patients: Concepts and Theories
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Pain Management in Hospice Patients: Concepts and Theories
The major concepts used in the current body of literature
Shaley et al. (2018) notes that palliative care and hospice services are underutilized due to patient misconceptions about their benefits. They emphasize the correlations between misconception and reception of the services. Notably, misconception and reception determine a patient's decision on the preferred place of accessing pain management services. More patients are likely to die at home and other healthcare facilities if they do not trust hospices and palliative care facilities. Hofmeister et al. (2018) propose homes as an alternative to hospice and hospital care. Besides, Cagle et al. (2015) observe that approximately 85%-100% of pain events can be resolved using adjunctive therapies and pharmaceuticals, making hospice centers a rare option for patients. However, as Tziraki et al. (2020) note, hospices should be trusted and used since their treatments are focused on maximizing health outcomes. Healthcare workers, institutions, and agencies could consider such alternatives for people that lack trust in hospice facilities. Integrating primary healthcare providers to the hospice and palliative care service delivery is critical to boosting client confidence and selecting treatment and management options aligned to their values.
Buss et al. note that the aging population is growing, but there is fewer specialized hospice personnel. They recommend using family physicians, internal medicine practitioners, and nurses to deliver hospice-relevant services. The proposal is fundamental to establishing confidence in the healthcare system. Hunnicutt et al. (2017) also recommend using hospices to manage pain in older adults, especially those with terminal illnesses like cancer. Buss et al. also highlight the need for offering education to nurses and other family-physicians on hospice services. They recommend developing a comprehensive map of patient needs before proposing hospice care as an alternative. Education and concept maps are critical to care delivery. The hospice environment presents significant challenges in pain management. Some of these include communication barriers, organization skills, teamwork, knowledge and medication skills, and patient-centric factors (Chi et al., 2018). Chi et al. also recommend an interdisciplinary approach in hospice pain management programs at home or in facilities. The research notes that pain management at the end of life is common and the most untreated condition.
There is declining confidence in hospice pain management for older people. Hunnicutt et al. observed that pain was higher in older people using Hospice services than others. For instance, there were 59.9% hospice users manifesting pain, and only 50% non-hospice users manifesting pain. The percentage difference is significant as it affects the lives and happiness of individuals and families. Belanger (2017) observes that palliative care and near-end-of-life care require integrating patient values. The article also recommends funding research on patient values before proposing ...