Assessment of the efficacy of palliative sedation in advanced cancer patients by evaluating discomfort levels: a prospective, international, multicenter observational study.

Background: Palliative sedation involves the intentional proportional lowering of the level of consciousness in patients with life-limiting disease who are experiencing refractory suffering. The efficacy of palliative sedation needs to be monitored to ensure patient comfort. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy using discomfort levels combined with sedation/agitation levels.

Pain in Palliative Cancer Patients - Analysis of the German National Palliative Care Registry.

Context: Palliative care aims to improve the quality of life in patients with progressive diseases such as cancer. Effective cancer pain management is a major challenge of palliative treatment. Empirical data on the prevalence of cancer pain, the efficiency of pain treatment and influencing factors are scarce.

Use of Essential Medicines for Pain Relief and Palliative Care: A Global Consensus Process.

Context: The WHO Model List of Essential Medicines includes 24 medications under the section Medicines for Pain and Palliative Care (EML). The Lancet Commission on Pain and Palliative Care developed the Lancet Essential Package (LEP), including 35 medications designed to alleviate serious health-related suffering worldwide.

Objectives: This study aims to provide recommendations on the appropriate use of essential of medicines in palliative care.

Early integration of palliative care versus standard cardiac care for patients with heart failure (EPCHF): a multicentre, parallel, two-arm, open-label, randomised controlled trial.

Background: Heart failure is a substantial global health concern that severely affects patients' quality of life. We aimed to compare the effects of early integration of palliative care (EIPC) and standard cardiac care on health status and mood of patients with non-terminal heart failure.

Methods: EPCHF was a multicentre, parallel, two-arm, open-label, randomised controlled trial carried out at University Hospital Bonn and University Hospital Düsseldorf in Germany.

European Society of Intensive Care Medicine guidelines on end of life and palliative care in the intensive care unit.

The European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM) has developed evidence-based recommendations and expert opinions about end-of-life (EoL) and palliative care for critically ill adults to optimize patient-centered care, improving outcomes of relatives, and supporting intensive care unit (ICU) staff in delivering compassionate and effective EoL and palliative care. An international multi-disciplinary panel of clinical experts, a methodologist, and representatives of patients and families examined key domains, including variability across countries, decision-making, palliative-care integration, communication, family-centered care, and conflict management. Eight evidence-based recommendations (6 of low level of evidence and 2 of high level of evidence) and 19 expert opinions were presented.

[New recommendations on palliative sedation].

Palliative sedation aims to relieve refractory suffering in patients with life-limiting disease. The 2009 framework on palliative sedation of the European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) has recently been updated. Recommendations have also been formulated by the research group SedPall in Germany.

Meaning in life of terminally ill parents with minor children compared to palliative care patients - a quantitative analysis using SMiLE.

Background: Caring for terminally ill patients with minor children can be very stressful. The perceived quality of life is significantly influenced by the Meaning in Life (MiL). No studies were found that focus on the prioritized special needs of this patient group.

Exploring long-term cancer survivors' care experiences and unmet needs: protocol for a qualitative study.

Background: The number of cancer survivors has increased in recent decades, and the majority of them suffer from sequelae of their disease and treatment. This study, which is part of the larger research project OPTILATER, aims to explore different aspects of care services for long-term survivors (≥ 5 years after initial cancer diagnosis) in Germany. The study places an emphasis on the situation of people from different age groups, with different socio-demographic and cultural backgrounds, and sexually and gender diverse individuals.

'Not a panacea' - Expert perspectives on the concept of resilience and its potential for palliative care.

Background: Resilience is an increasingly used term in medicine and subject to various definitions, often not easy to grasp. There are established core concepts for patients receiving palliative care, for example, meaning in life, that have already been researched a lot. Resilience, relative to these concepts, is a new object of research in palliative care, where it has so far been used predominantly with regard to the well-being of teams.

Global Assessment of Palliative Care Need: Serious Health-Related Suffering Measurement Methodology.

Context: Inequities and gaps in palliative care access are a serious impediment to health systems especially in low- and middle-income countries and the accurate measurement of need across health conditions is a critical step to understanding and addressing the issue. Serious Health-related Suffering (SHS) is a novel methodology to measure the palliative care need and was originally developed by The Lancet Commission on Global Access to Palliative Care and Pain Relief. In 2015, the first iteration - SHS 1.

'We are all in the same boat': a qualitative cross-sectional analysis of COVID-19 pandemic imagery in scientific literature and its use for people working in the German healthcare sector.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge to professional responders in healthcare settings. This is reflected in the language used to describe the pandemic in the professional literature of the respective professions. The aim of this multidisciplinary study was to analyze the linguistic imagery in the relevant professional literature and to determine the identification of different professional groups with it and its emotional effects.

Revised European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) recommended framework on palliative sedation: An international Delphi study.

Background: The European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) acknowledges palliative sedation as an important, broadly accepted intervention for patients with life-limiting disease experiencing refractory symptoms. The EAPC therefore developed 2009 a framework on palliative sedation. A revision was needed due to new evidence from literature, ongoing debate and criticism of methodology, terminology and applicability.

[Concept-dependent and -independent care effects of site-specific care concepts using "pain" as an example].

Background: Structures of palliative care, cross-sectoral transitions and care pathways of patients with palliative care needs were investigated at two sites. The systematic comparison of similarities and differences using the topic of 'pain' as an example is intended to provide information on the extent to which these are related to site-specific palliative care concepts (integrated and cooperative).

Methods: The study follows a mixed-methods design.

Evaluation of a Study Protocol of the Application of Humor Interventions in Palliative Care Through a First Pilot Study.

Background: Humor and laughter might have an alleviating effect on pain threshold and enhance coping and building relationships. However, randomized controlled studies in palliative care have struggled with high percentages of attrition and missing values.

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate a study protocol through a pilot study for the evaluation of a multistage humor intervention with psychological and physiological outcome parameters that may be applied successfully in a palliative care environment.

Development of Care Pathway for Assessment and Treatment of Fatigue in Palliative Care.

Objectives: Fatigue is a frequent and burdensome symptom in patients with advanced disease in palliative care. However, it is under-assessed and undertreated in clinical practice, even though many treatment options have been identified in systematic reviews. Care pathways with defined and standardised steps have been recommended for effective management in the clinical setting.