Report on palliative sedation medication usage: a survey of palliative care experts in Eight European countries.

BACKGROUND: The practice of palliative sedation continues to raise ethical questions among people, which in turn leads to its varied acceptance and practice across regions. As part of the Palliative Sedation European Union (EU) project, the aim of the present study was to determine the perceptions of palliative care experts regarding the practice of palliative sedation in eight European countries (The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, UK, Italy, Spain, Hungary, and Romania). METHODS: A specifically designed survey, including questions on the most frequently used medications for palliative sedation, their availability per countries and settings, and the barriers and facilitators to the appropriate practice of palliative sedation was sent to expert clinicians involved and knowledgeable in palliative care in the indicated countries. A purposive sampling strategy was used to select at least 18 participating clinicians per consortium country. Descriptive statistical analysis was conducted on the survey data. RESULTS: Of the 208 expert clinicians invited to participate, 124 participants completed the survey. Midazolam was perceived to be the most frequently used benzodiazepine in all eight countries. 86% and 89% of expert clinicians in Germany and Italy, respectively, perceived midazolam was used "almost always", while in Hungary and Romania only about 50% or less of the respondents perceived this. Levomepromazine was the neuroleptic most frequently perceived to be used for palliative sedation in the Netherlands, Spain, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Between 38- 86% of all eight countries´ expert clinicians believed that opioid medications were "almost always" used during palliative sedation. The perceived use of IV hydration and artificial nutrition "almost always" was generally low, while the country where both IV hydration and artificial nutrition were considered to be "very often" given by a third of the expert clinicians, was in Hungary, with 36% and 27%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides insight about the differences in the perceived practice of medication during palliative sedation between eight European countries. In countries where palliative care services have been established longer perceptions regarding medication use during palliative sedation were more in line with the recommended European guidelines than in Central and Eastern European countries like Romania and Hungary.

Regulations on palliative sedation: an international survey across eight European countries.

BACKGROUND: Palliative sedation is a commonly accepted medical practice. This study aims to clarify how palliative sedation is regulated in various countries and whether this may impact its practice. METHODS: An online survey requesting regulations on palliative sedation was conducted in Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Italy, The Netherlands, Spain, Romania and the UK. Purposive sampling strategy was used to identify clinicians from different medical fields and legal experts for each country. Regulations were analyzed using the principles of the European Association for Palliative Care Framework on palliative sedation. Country reports describing how palliative sedation is regulated were elaborated. RESULTS: One hundred and thirty-nine out of 223 (62%) participants identified 31 laws and other regulations affecting palliative sedation. In Spain, 12 regional laws recognize palliative sedation as a right of the patient at the end of life when there are refractory symptoms. In Italy, the law of informed consent and advance directives specifically recognizes the doctor can use deep sedation when there are refractory symptoms. There are also general medical laws that, while not explicitly referring to palliative sedation, regulate sedation-related principles: the obligation of doctors to honour advance directives, informed consent, the decision-making process and the obligation to document the whole process. In Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, palliative sedation is also regulated through professional guidelines that are binding as good practice with legal significance. CONCLUSIONS: Palliative sedation is considered in the general law of medical practice, in laws regarding the patient's autonomy, and through professional guidelines.

Who should talk with patients about their end-of-life care wishes? A nationwide survey of the Hungarian population.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the needs and opportunities of the general population to communicate their end-of-life care wishes and to investigate what roles are assigned to healthcare providers and family members in end-of-life care discussions. DESIGN: A cross-sectional social survey was carried out in Hungary. Descriptive analysis and analysis of variance were performed. SETTING: Nationwide survey of the Hungarian general population. SUBJECT: The sample (n = 1100) was designed to represent the adult population as per distribution by gender, age and geographical region. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Needs and opportunities of the general population to communicate end-of-life care wishes. RESULTS: 72% of participants found it important to discuss their end-of-life care wishes with someone. Six out of ten believed that it was also the GPs' task to talk with the patients about their end-of-life care wishes. An almost equal level of engagement was expected from healthcare providers (80%) -especially physicians (72%)- and family members (75%) in end-of-life conversations. However, only 36% of participants felt that there was someone among their healthcare providers, and 56% of them had a family member or friend with whom they could speak openly about death, dying and preparing for death. CONCLUSION: Compared to their needs, the general population had fewer opportunities to speak about death, dying and preparing for death. Training programs for healthcare providers, particularly GPs, and public awareness campaigns may support the broader application of advance care planning in Hungary.Key PointsCurrent guidelines recommend that GPs initiate advance care planning discussions. However, little is known with whom the general population wish to discuss their end-of-life care preferences and with whom there is an opportunity to do so.An almost equal level of engagement was expected from healthcare providers -especially physicians- and family members in end-of-life conversations. Most of the general population thought that participation in end-of-life discussions was also the GPs' task.The majority of participants reported that there was no one among their healthcare providers and a sizable minority felt that there was no one among their family members or friends with whom they could talk openly about death, dying, and preparing for death.The highest levels of unmet needs regarding end-of-life conversations with healthcare providers were found among those who considered it important to discuss their end-of-life care wishes.

Characteristics related to the treatment of colorectal cancer patients based on a pilot study in Baranya county, Hungary / A colorectalis daganatos betegek kezeléshez jutásának jellemzoi egy Baranya megyei pilotvizsgálat keretében

Összefoglaló.Bevezetés: Az európai országok közül Magyarország a colorectalis daganatos incidencia és mortalitás szempontjából az élen szerepel. Ennek hátterében a beteghez vagy az egészségügyi rendszerhez kötheto tényezok is állhatnak. Célkituzés: Kutatásunk célja, hogy pilotvizsgálat keretében feltárjuk a colorectalis daganatos betegek kezeléshez jutásának körülményeit azáltal, hogy a betegek elso tünetei, kivizsgálásuk jellemzoi, betegségük stádiuma és a terápiáig eltelt idotartamok közötti összefüggéseket elemezzük. Módszer: Retrospektív adatgyujtés történt 26, Baranya megyei háziorvosi praxis colorectalis daganatos betegeinek (n = 212) adataira vonatkozóan a praxisok, valamint a Pécsi Tudományegyetem Klinikai Központjának (PTE KK) adatbázisából. Meghatároztuk a terápiáig eltelt intervallumot (TEI), amely az elso orvos-beteg találkozástól - amikor a beteg colorectalis daganatra utaló tünetekkel eloször jelentkezett orvosnál - a terápia megkezdésének elso napjáig eltelt idot jelenti. A statisztikai elemzés során deskriptív analízist, valamint varianciaanalízist végeztünk. Eredmények: A sürgosségire került betegek leggyakoribb tünete a hasi/végbéltáji fájdalom volt, míg a háziorvost felkereso betegek a véres székletet említették a legtöbbször. A sürgosségi osztályon jelentkezo betegek esetében lényegesen magasabb arányban (61%) diagnosztizáltak késoi (III-IV.) stádiumú daganatot, mint a háziorvoshoz forduló betegek körében (42,7%). A TEI rövidebb volt, ha a betegek sürgosségi osztályra kerültek (TEI-medián: 15 nap késoi, 34,5 nap korai [I-II.] stádiumú daganat esetén), mint amikor háziorvosnál jelentkeztek eloször (TEI-medián: 86 nap késoi, 83 nap korai stádiumú daganat esetén). Következtetés: A sürgosségi és a háziorvosi kivizsgálás esetén észlelt TEI-k összemérhetok a nyugat-európai országokéival. A hazai magas mortalitási mutatók hátterében inkább a betegek késedelmes orvoshoz fordulása állhat, ami a primer és szekunder prevenció fontosságára hívja fel a figyelmet. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(4): 153-160. INTRODUCTION: Hungary has one of the leading colorectal cancer incidence and mortality rates in Europe. Patient-related and healthcare-related factors may all play a role. OBJECTIVE: Our objective was to investigate the characteristics related to the treatment of colorectal cancer patients by analysing their initial symptoms, disease stage, referral characteristics and total treatment intervals. METHOD: A retrospective study was conducted based on data from colorectal patients (n = 212) from the databases of 26 general physician practices and the University of Pécs, Clinical Center. The total treatment interval was determined as the number of days from the first patient-physician consultation with symptoms until the first day of treatment. Descriptive analysis and analysis of variance were performed. RESULTS: Patients' most common symptom was abdominal/rectal pain when presenting at the emergency department while bloody stool was the most common among patients visiting their general physicians. The proportion of patients with advanced stage (III-IV) cancer was significantly higher at the emergency department than among patients visiting their general physicians (61% and 42.7%, respectively). The total treatment interval was shorter when patients presented at the emergency department (total treatment interval median: 15 days for advanced stage, 34.5 days for early [I-II] stage cancer) than when they initially visited their general physicians (total treatment interval median: 83 days for early stage, 86 days for advanced stage cancers). CONCLUSION: The total treatment intervals for patients visiting the emergency department or their general physicians were similar to those found in Western European countries. The high mortality rates in Hungary are more probably due to patient-related delays, which highlight the importance of primary and secondary prevention. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(4): 153-160.

Wait times to diagnosis and treatment in patients with colorectal cancer in Hungary.

BACKGROUND: Mortality from colorectal cancer (CRC) in Hungary is the highest in Europe. It was the aim of the present study to determine the wait times from first presentation to diagnosis, in a sample of Hungarian patients with CRC, as well as to assess the stages of CRC at diagnosis. METHODS: A retrospective study based on data from 212 patients with CRC in Baranya county was carried out. Data extraction was performed from 26 GP practices and from the database of the University of Pécs Clinical Center. Total Diagnostic Interval (TDI) was determined as the number of days from the first patient-physician consultation with symptoms until the pathologically confirmed date of diagnosis. Total Treatment Interval (TTI) was calculated until the first day of any form of treatment. Statistical analyses, descriptive analysis and analysis of variance, were performed. RESULTS: A minority (36.8%) of the diagnosed CRC cases were early stage cancers (Stages I-II), while the majority (59.9%) of the cases were diagnosed as advanced stage (Stages III-IV) cancers. The median TDI was 41 days, and the median TTI was 67 days. There was a wide range between minimum and maximum waiting times regarding both diagnosis and initiation of therapy (369-371 days). CONCLUSIONS: Wait times to diagnosis and treatment of CRC in Hungary are similar to Western countries however the ratio of advanced cancers at diagnosis is higher. The cause of late diagnosis may be due to patient delay, indicating the need for implementation of primary and secondary prevention.

Hungarian general practitioners' attitude and the role of education in dementia care.

BACKGROUND: Dementia in the elderly constitutes a growing challenge in healthcare worldwide, including Hungary. There is no previous report on the role of general practitioners in the management of dementia. AIM: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the Hungarian general practitioners' attitude toward their patients living with dementia as well as dementia care. Our goal was also to assess their willingness and habits in assessing dementia. Additionally we wanted to explore the role of education about dementia, and its impact on their attitude in dementia management. METHODS: As part of a large survey, a self-administered questionnaire was filled out voluntarily by 402 of general practitioners. According to our preset criteria, 277 surveys were selected for evaluation. Descriptive statistical analysis and Likert-scale analysis were performed. FINDINGS: Half of the doctors (49.8%) indicated that they conducted a test to assess cognitive functions in case of suspicion. Among the respondents who did not assess, 50.0% of physicians cited lack of time as the main reason for not doing so and 14.4% of them had not proper knowledge of testing methods. The respondents most often mentioned feelings toward their patients with dementia, were regret (Likert-scale mean: 3.33), helplessness (3.28) and sadness (3.07). The majority of physicians thought the treatment of dementia was difficult (4.46). Most of the respondents (81.2%) indicated that in the past 2 years they had not participated in any training about dementia. Those practitioners who had participated in some form of education were less likely to feel helpless facing a patient with dementia, and education also determined their approach to dementia care.

"Never at ease" - family carers within integrated palliative care: a multinational, mixed method study.

BACKGROUND: Family carers manage a wide range of responsibilities in the lives and care of patients receiving palliative care. They fulfil multiple roles and perform activities within different settings. This has immediate consequences on family carers' every-day lives. According to literature, family carers in palliative care are both part of the formal and informal care network, but also persons in need of support. This article aims to investigate 1) burdens and rewards associated with family caregiving and 2) what family carers find helpful in their contact with professionals from integrated palliative care initiatives (IPC-i) and other services. METHODS: Family carers looking after patients with cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or chronic heart failure were purposefully recruited at 22 IPC-i in Belgium, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom in the course of the project "Patient-centred palliative care pathways in advanced cancer and chronic disease" (InSup-C). Semi-structured interviews (n = 156) and 87 quantitative questionnaires (CRA, POS, CANHELP Lite) were conducted with family carers. Interviews were analysed with transnationally agreed thematic codes (MAXQDA or NVivo). Statistical tests (SPSS) were carried out in accordance with the characteristic value of the items and distributions. RESULTS: On average, quantitative data showed moderate burden, but the qualitative findings indicated that this burden might be underrated. There is some evidence that IPC-i with well-developed professional care networks and communication systems relieved family carers' burden by direct and indirect interventions; e.g. provision of night shift nurses or psychological support. Needs of family carers were similar in all participating countries. However, in all countries IPC-i mostly offered one-off events for family carers, lacking systematic or institutionalised support structures. CONCLUSIONS: Data suggest that, most IPC-i did not pay enough attention to the needs of most family carers, and did not offer proactive care and access to supportive resources to them (e.g. training, respite care, access to resources). We recommend recognizing family carers as part of the 'unit of care' and partner in caregiving, to improve their knowledge about, and access to, and the support available.

[Who should decide at the end of life? International practice of advance care planning and possibilities for adaptation in Hungary]. / Ki döntsön az élet végén? Az ellátás elozetes tervezésének nemzetközi gyakorlata és hazai lehetoségei.

At the advanced stage of serious illness, end-of-life decisions need to be made. Advance care planning offers patients the right to decide on their own future care when independent decision-making is no longer possible. The most complex and effective advance care plans include patients' preferred or refused medical treatments, care-related wishes, and individual values as well. Advance care planning can improve end-of-life care and contribute to higher satisfaction. It can also reduce distress in relatives and the costs of care. Patients' preferences provide a guidance for professional care. A number of studies have identified the benefits of advance care planning, and it has been included in guidelines. Potential barriers to advance care planning could be as follows: taboo of talking about dying, negative attitudes of patients and relatives, poor knowledge of professional caregivers, lack of necessary circumstances to have the conversation. Advance care planning is almost unknown in Hungary, although it is possible to refuse certain types of treatments. Cooperation of professionals, development of gradual and postgraduate trainings, and improvement of social awareness are also needed so that advance care planning can be adapted in Hungary. Orv Hetil. 2018; 159(4): 131-140.

Hospice Palliative Care Development in Hungary.

During the past 25 years, many developmental steps have occurred in Hungary in palliative care. Further education and service development is needed to provide a quality palliative care for all the Hungarian people. Hungary has a universal health care system with a developed infrastructure. The first Hungarian hospice team started in 1991. At that time, the concept of hospice care was unknown. Symptom control and psychosocial support for the dying patient was inadequate. The regulatory framework was based on the 1997 Health Care Act which was followed by significant palliative care legislation including documents on the legal requirements for palliative care (2004). National guidelines were developed in 2002. Home and inpatient hospice care are reimbursed by the National Insurance Fund. Patients and families pay nothing. The multidisciplinary team provides care for patients and families and hospice home care is widely available across the country. Inpatient units are still lacking in Hungary. Strong opioids are readily available in the country and can be prescribed for cancer and noncancer patients. Palliative care is taught in medical and nursing undergraduate and postgraduate education. From 2014, physicians in Hungary can take a one-year course to qualify for a license in palliative medicine.

[Current situation of palliative care in Hungary. Integrated palliative care model as a breakout possibility]. / A magyarországi palliatív-hospice ellátás helyzete, kihívásai, kitörési pontjai.

Modern palliative-hospice care has gained space in Europe for more than 50 years. Since the initial empirical work of Cicely Saunders, palliative medicine has gained its place in evidence-based medicine in more and more countries. However, development, as in many other medical fields, is not uniform, there are big differences between countries in the world. There are also significant differences in development of care and the level of services within the European Union amongst Western and Eastern European countries. These differences affect the professional approach, legislative mechanisms and social acceptance. Hungarian palliative-hospice care has developed significantly over the past 15 years. For further development thoughtful strategic steps and service development is needed. The integration of palliative care into standard oncology is an international requirement, which also appears in the form of professional guidelines. Hungary has also played a role in the development of the European model of integrated palliative care of which Hungarian implementation, the "Pécs model", is discussed in detail in our paper.

How continuity of care is experienced within the context of integrated palliative care: A qualitative study with patients and family caregivers in five European countries.

BACKGROUND: Patients with advanced diseases often experience deficient continuity of care. Although integrated palliative care promotes continuity of care, it is not clear how it can be optimized to improve continuity of care experiences. AIM: To examine how relational, informational and management continuity of care are experienced by patients with advanced diseases and their family caregivers receiving care from several integrated palliative care initiatives in five European countries. DESIGN: We adopted a longitudinal qualitative study design including two interviews (interval 3 months) with patients and family caregivers focusing on how health care professionals responded to their needs. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Analysis involved a two-step qualitative content approach. SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: A total of 22 integrated palliative care initiatives (established local palliative care collaborations) were selected in Belgium, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. We recruited 152 patients (63% cancer, 24% chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 13% heart failure; life expectancy <1 year; mean age 68 years, 56% female) and 92 family caregivers (mean age 61 years, 66% female). RESULTS: Trusted relationships with a small number of key health care professionals to receive tailored care and easily access help were essential. Relational continuity was often deficient, especially with general practitioners. Although informational and management continuity was often lacking in care provision, collaborative integrated palliative care initiatives were related to consistent and coherent care. CONCLUSION: Patients and family caregivers most likely experience continuity of care by having a small number of trusted health care professionals who are available, provide multidisciplinary care and regularly transfer information to all health care professionals involved. Optimizing continuity of care requires further integration of integrated palliative care initiatives with other health care professionals involved in the patients' care networks.

[The role of primary care professionals in preventive activitites during epidemics. Focus group assessment of the management of flu pandemic in 2009/2010]. / Az alapellátásban dolgozó orvosok és munkatársaik preventív szerepe járványok idején. Fókuszcsoportokra alapozott szakmapolitikai hatáselemzés a 2009/2010. évi H1N1 influenza-világjárvány tapasztalatairól.

INTRODUCTION: The experiences gained during the H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009/2010 could serve for a better planning and management of later outbreaks. AIM: The EU-sponsored TELL ME project aimed to provide evidence and develop models for improved risk communication during infectious disease crisis. Among its objectives was to develop original communication strategies regarding appropriate messages related to preventative behavior and advice based on uncertainties also addressing vaccine-resistant groups. METHOD: Focus groups involving family physicians (FPs) were called upon for assessing the main issues during the H1N1 pandemic, the possibilities for improving the preventative process and outcomes. RESULTS: The study demonstrated the key-role of family doctors during outbreaks; patients put their trust in their elected FP, he or she representing a personal example of health behavior. The evidence based information about effectiveness and safety of vaccines are needed in communication towards health professionals. CONCLUSIONS: Involvement of health care professionals in the communication provides validity, the communication routine of opinion leaders meant to be used for such purpose. The main media message should be: "For prevention go to see your family doctor". Orv. Hetil., 2017, 158(14), 523-532.

Role of health care professionals in preventative activities and vaccination programs during outbreaks.

PURPOSE: The general purpose of TELL ME study was to give an insight into the experiences of European family physicians with management of H1N1 pandemic flu. METHODS: Qualitative research methods (focus group discussions, one-to-one interviews, and online data collection) were used to explore family doctors' opinion and suggestions. Overall 158 family physicians took part in the study from six European countries. RESULTS: Family doctors' most important experience was that the official campaign was not able to compensate negative effects of the mass media. Due to the poor evidence-based information about new vaccines, it was difficult to convince the public and some health care professionals too. Lack of unified directives - under unclear circumstances - made the routine patient care more difficult and hampered the collaboration between different health care providers. Family physicians felt a pressure from health authorities to achieve high immunization rate, but got only a little support from them. Despite the difficulties, vaccination program was a success, mainly among high-risk population. For better handling of a future pandemic, Hungarian family physician made many general and practical suggestions.

Towards integration of palliative care in patients with chronic heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a systematic literature review of European guidelines and pathways.

BACKGROUND: Despite the positive impact of Palliative Care (PC) on the quality of life for patients and their relatives, the implementation of PC in non-cancer health-care delivery in the EU seems scarcely addressed. The aim of this study is to assess guidelines/pathways for integrated PC in patients with advanced Chronic Heart Failure (CHF) and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in Europe via a systematic literature review. METHODS: Search results were screened by two reviewers. Eligible studies of adult patients with CHF or COPD published between 01/01/1995 and 31/12/2013 in Europe in 6 languages were included. Nine electronic databases were searched, 6 journals were hand-searched and citation tracking was also performed. For the analysis, a narrative synthesis was employed. RESULTS: The search strategy revealed 26,256 studies without duplicates. From these, 19 studies were included in the review; 17 guidelines and 2 pathways. 18 out of 19 focused on suffering reduction interventions, 13/19 on a holistic approach and 15/19 on discussions of illness prognosis and limitations. The involvement of a PC team was mentioned in 13/19 studies, the assessment of the patients' goals of care in 12/19 and the advance care planning in 11/19. Only 4/19 studies elaborated on aspects such as grief and bereavement care, 7/19 on treatment in the last hours of life and 8/19 on the continuation of goal adjustment. CONCLUSION: The results illustrate that there is a growing awareness for the importance of integrated PC in patients with advanced CHF or COPD. At the same time, however, they signal the need for the development of standardized strategies so that existing barriers are alleviated.

[New perspectives of mourning]. / A gyász új perspektívái.

Grief is a natural part of life and it is always individual. Researchers have tried and still try to develop different theories to interpret, explain, and approach this particular phenomenon. The aim of the authors was to review the theoretical literature of mourning and to present new bereavement theories for domestic professionals. From the first half of the 20th century until presently mourning theories have undergone significant changes. Today the determinant models includes the flexible, coping-oriented dual process model, meaning reconstruction model which focuses on the meaning making, and the model which focuses on the development after the loss. The authors conclude that experts, who work in the clinical area should know the prevailing theories of grief, because they encounter often with loss at work. The presented models may contribute to more efficient work, to better understanding of the mourning process and to a better support of families.

Experiences of patients, family and professional caregivers with Integrated Palliative Care in Europe: protocol for an international, multicenter, prospective, mixed method study.

BACKGROUND: The number of people living with advanced cancer and chronic disease has increased worldwide. Many of these patients could benefit from palliative care, focusing on optimising the quality of life of patients and their families facing problems resulting from life-threatening diseases. However, fragmentation and discontinuity of palliative care services often result in suboptimal palliative care. In order to overcome these problems, models using an integrated care approach are increasingly advocated in palliative care services. Although several models and definitions of Integrated Palliative Care (IPC) have been developed, the effects of integrated care are still under-investigated. Knowledge of the key components that constitute successful palliative care integration is still lacking. This mixed methods study will examine the experiences of patients, family caregivers and professional caregivers in order to provide insight into the mechanisms that constitute successful palliative care integration. METHODS/DESIGN: Prospective multiple embedded case study. Three to five integrated palliative care initiatives will be selected in Belgium, Germany, Hungary, The Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Data collection will involve Social Network Analysis (SNA), a patient diary, semi-structured interviews, and questionnaires: Palliative care Outcome Scale (POS), Canhelp Lite, Caregiver Reaction Assessment (CRA). Patients and family caregivers will be followed in 4 consecutive contact moments over 3 months. The diary will be kept weekly by patients. One focus group per initiative will be conducted with professional caregivers. Interviews and focus groups will be tape recorded, transcribed and qualitatively analysed using NVivo 10. SPSS Statistics 20 will be used for statistical analysis. DISCUSSION: This study will provide valuable knowledge about barriers, opportunities and good practices in palliative care integration in the selected initiatives across countries. This knowledge can be used in the benchmark of integrated palliative care initiatives across Europe. It will add to the scientific evidence for IPC services internationally and will contribute to improvements in the quality of care and the quality of living and dying of severely ill patients and their relatives in Europe.

[The importance of psychosocial care]. / A pszichoszociális ellátás fontosságáról.

INTRODUCTION: Psychosocial support is very important for cancer patients, because it affects the quality of life of the patients and the course of the disease. It helps the family to deal with difficult situations and prepare for future challenges. AIM: The aim of this study was to analyse the psychosocial care in the Pécs-Baranyai Hospice Foundation and answer the following questions: what are the characteristics of psychosocial care and how many people receive this support. METHOD: It was a retrospective study. RESULTS: During the 8 years examined, 36% of the patients (273 persons) asked or proposed by anyone psychosocial support for the family. However, meeting between the patient and expert evolved only in 49% of the 273 patients and, thus, only 18% of the patients received psychosocial support. CONCLUSIONS: In the Pécs-Baranya Hospice Foundation less patients received psychosocial support, than those who would need it. Psychosocial care is not yet an integral part of hospice care in practice.