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Palliative Care
by Lorraine Kember
http://www.cancerthroughacarerseyes.jkwh.com
Palliative Care ~ Helping YOU care for your Terminally Ill
Loved One.
Palliative Care is available to help you care for your
terminally ill loved one and, if it is your wish, they
will also make it possible for your loved one to die at
home.
Ask most people what they know about Palliative Care and
they will inevitably reply that it is intended for those
who are dying. Undeniably, Palliative Care is available
to support families at this sad time, however their
services are equally intended to provide physical,
emotional and spiritual support to the patient and their
families as they journey through terminal illness.
It is important to bear in mind, that despite a terminal
diagnosis, there is still life, and survival may range
from months to several years. Quality of life, for the
duration of terminal illness is paramount. Palliative Care
teams and the services they provide are there to help you
care for your terminally ill loved one and to provide for
them, the best quality of life attainable.
It is unfortunate that due to a misconception that
Palliative Care is intended only for the very end of life,
many do not embrace their services until the final stages
of terminal disease and as a result, quality of life which
could have been attained for the entirety of the illness
is never realized.
Chronic untreated pain is debilitating, it dramatically
affects a patient's ability to participate in daily
routines and in some cases takes away their will to live.
Tragically, many people are suffering chronic pain
unnecessarily. Pain management specialists attached to
Palliative Care teams have vast knowledge regarding cancer
pain and of medications available to control it. Once
pain is brought under control, quality of life improves
dramatically.
Caring for a terminally ill loved one is a catastrophic
experience; Palliative Care members understand this and
there are counsellors available to help you cope with your
anticipatory grief. Likewise, Chaplains are there to
support you with prayer.
I cannot praise highly enough the services of Palliative
Care, the team, who worked with me during my husband's
terminal illness, have my eternal gratitude. Through
their dedication and the pain management specialist's
knowledge, my husband's pain was controlled and the
quality of his life improved dramatically. The Silver
Chain nurses attached to the team visited us regularly and
I looked forward to speaking with them and voicing any
concerns I had in regard to my husband's care. They never
intruded on our privacy but were always just a phone call
away if I needed them.
I urge you to embrace palliative care soon after diagnosis
so that your terminally ill loved one and you may reap the
benefits afforded by this wonderful group of caring
individuals.
Article written by: Lorraine Kember ~ Author of "Lean on
Me" Cancer through a Carer's Eyes. Lorraine's book is
written from her experience of caring for her dying
husband in the hope of helping others. It includes
insight and discussion on: Anticipatory Grief,
Understanding and identifying pain, Pain Management and
Symptom Control, Chemotherapy, Palliative Care, Quality of
Life and Dying at home ~ Plus excerpts and poems from her
personal diary. Highly recommended by the Cancer Council.
Lean on Me is not available in Book Stores - For detailed
information, Doctor's recommendations and on line ordering
facility, visit www.cancerthroughacarerseyes.jkwh.com
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