"There were more decisions and more options than just yes or no": Evaluating a decision aid for advanced cancer patients and their family caregivers.

Objective: Few decision aids are available for patients with a serious illness who face many treatment and end-of-life decisions. We evaluated the Looking Ahead: Choices for Medical Care When You're Seriously Ill® patient decision aid (PtDA), one component of an early palliative care clinical trial.

Method: Our participants included individuals with advanced cancer and their caregivers who had participated in the ENABLE (Educate, Nurture, Advise, Before Life Ends) early palliative care telehealth randomized controlled trial (RCT) conducted in a National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center, a U.

Developing successful models of cancer palliative care services.

Objectives: This article describes successful institutionally based programs for providing high-quality palliative care to persons with cancer and their family members. Challenges and opportunities for program development are also described.

Data Sources: Published literature from 2000 to present describing concurrent oncology palliative care clinical trials, standards, and guidelines were reviewed.

Medication kits for managing symptomatic emergencies in the home: a survey of common hospice practice.

Introduction: Alleviation of symptoms associated with advanced illness and dying is a fundamental goal and core principle of palliative care. Little research exists regarding hospice programs' practices for prescribing, dispensing, and utilizing medication kits in the home for management of uncontrolled symptoms.

Methods: We conducted a telephone survey of all 22 agencies in New Hampshire providing home hospice care.