Triggering palliative care referrals through the identification of poor prognosis in older patients presented to emergency departments in rural Australia.

Background: Without objective screening for risk of death, the palliative care needs of older patients near the end of life may be unrecognised and unmet. Aim: This study aimed to estimate the usefulness of the Criteria for Screening and Triaging to Appropriate aLternative care (CriSTAL) tool in determining older patients' risk of death within 3-months after initial hospital admission. Methods: A prospective cohort study of 235 patients aged 70+ years, who presented to two rural emergency departments in two adjacent Australian states, was utilised. The 'risk of death' of each patient was screened with the CriSTAL prognostic tool. Their 3-month follow-up outcomes were assessed through telephone interviews and a clinical record review. Findings: A CriSTAL cut-off score of more than 7 yielded a sensitivity of 80.7% and specificity of 70.81% for a 3-month risk of death. Palliative care services were only used by 31% of the deceased in their last trimester of life. Conclusion: Prognostic tools provide a viable means of identifying individuals with a poor prognosis. Identification can trigger an earlier referral to palliative care, which will benefit the patient's wellbeing and quality of life.

Preparedness for caregiving: A phenomenological study of the experiences of rural Australian family palliative carers.

The care of people with life-limiting illnesses is increasingly moving away from an acute setting into the community. Thus, the caregiver role is growing in significance and complexity. The importance of preparing and supporting family caregivers is well established; however, less is known about the impact of rurality on preparedness and how preparedness shapes the caregiving continuum including bereavement. The aim of this study, conducted in 2017, was to explore how bereaved rural family palliative carers described their preparedness for caregiving. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was employed following semi-structured interviews with four women and six men (N = 10, aged 55-87 years). Participants were recruited voluntarily through past engagement with a Regional Specialist Palliative Care Consultancy Service in Australia. The experiences of caregivers illustrated a lack of preparedness for the role and were characterised by four major themes: Into the unknown, Into the battle, Into the void and Into the good. The unknown was associated with a lack of knowledge and skills, fear, prognostic communication, exclusion, emotional distress and grief experience. Battles were experienced in a number of ways: intrapsychically (existing within the mind), through role conflict and identity; interpersonally with the patient, clinician and family; and systematically (against health, financial and legal systems). The void was felt during isolation in caregiving, in relinquishing the role, in bereavement and in feeling abandoned by service providers. Positive experiences, such as being valued, included and connected to supports, and the fostering of closer relationships and deeper meaning, occurred less frequently but temporarily buffered against negative aspects. Implications from this study for policy and practice centre on the frequent, purposeful and genuine engagement of caregivers. Services and clinicians are encouraged to enhance communication practices, promote meaningful inclusion, address access issues and enhance support at role relinquishment.

Nebulisers or spacers for the administration of bronchodilators to those with asthma attending emergency departments?

BACKGROUND: Systematic reviews and national guidelines conclude that the nebulised route of administration of bronchodilators has no advantage over the use of a spacer in moderately severe exacerbations of asthma. Whether this recommendation is implemented and whether it might affect use of staff time is unknown. OBJECTIVES: To determine the current method of administration of bronchodilators to those with non-life-threatening asthma attending emergency departments (ED) in London, UK and to monitor the implementation of a new policy to administer bronchodilators by spacers in one ED with a special reference to the time taken by nurses to administer the therapy by two different routes. METHODS: Thirty-five EDs in Greater London were surveyed regarding their current practice. A time and motion study was then undertaken in one department observing nurses administering bronchodilators in the 3 weeks before and 3 weeks after a departmental policy change to favour the use of spacer devices rather than nebulisers. RESULTS: The majority of EDs (94.3%) in Greater London were using the nebulised route of administering bronchodilators to the majority of their adult patients. Spacers were more commonly used for the treatment of children (60.3% of departments using spacers and nebulisers or spacers alone). Over half of the hospitals surveyed (51.4%) were unaware that the British Guidelines on Asthma Management suggested that outcomes were the same and that there were potential advantages in the use of a spacer for both adults and children. Time and motion studies showed that the use of a spacer took no more nursing time than administration of the bronchodilator via a nebuliser; in fact treatment and set-up time were considerably lower for spacers. CONCLUSION: Spacer administration of bronchodilators to those with asthma attending EDs utilises less treatment time than use of a nebuliser. A survey of EDs in Greater London has shown that despite guideline conclusions there appears to be little evidence of reduction in use of nebulisers; a fear that use of alternatives might take nurses longer is not supported by this study.

Symptoms and management options in cardiomyopathy.

Cardiomyopathy is the most common cause of sudden cardiac death in young people, including trained athletes (Maron et al, 1996). Often the tragedy of sudden death is the first indication of its presence within a family. This article describes the four types of cardiomyopathy, diagnosis, treatment and management options, and discusses ways in which the new National Service Framework for Coronary Heart Disease (Department of Health, 2005) will help in planning and implementing services.