Palliative care is the field of medicine in which we care for patients receiving palliative care. It is a field in which you need to have many qualities in order to do it successfully. First and foremost, you need to have empathy and a desire to help, and not get tired of the other person. You need to have a sense of humour to cope with difficulties and emotional strain. Physical fitness is also important, as palliative care is round-the-clock and often requires travel to the patient.
It is also important to take care of yourself to avoid professional burnout. Everyone should have their own springboard, something to relax and take their emotions out. The family also plays an important role, as they are often involved in the care of the patient.
In summary, palliative care requires many qualities and commitment.
Palliative care is a demanding and emotionally difficult medical field, in which doctors and nurses have to balance professionalism with a humanistic attitude towards the patient. In order to care for palliative care patients, an empathetic predisposition, a willingness to help and continuing education in the field are essential. It is also important to prevent professional burnout and to have some sort of springboard, such as a hobby or religious faith. This will help you to cope better with the difficulties that palliative care brings.
The media have already done a great deal to promote hospices and their work. It used to be that you had to explain to everyone individually what the hospice does. Today it is definitely different. We are close to families, patients and our surroundings, who can get information about hospices themselves. Thanks to the activities of the media and journalists we can constantly promote the activities of hospices. Therefore, actions like this are a good example of how important it is to keep talking about it. New generations may not be aware of the existence of hospices, and the experience of Western countries shows that this ignorance often leads to euthanasia or other solutions that doctors consider to be wrong.
As for cancer, I think it is still a taboo subject. Maybe it's too big a word, but it certainly has a negative connotation. Therefore, it is important that we as a society start to talk openly about cancer and how hospices can help people with the disease and their families.
Patients who come to hospital after a stroke or with coronary artery disease are often unaware of the seriousness of their illness. Paradoxically, cancer is still seen as the most dangerous disease and comes first in our consciousness. Patients' families sometimes ask us to keep quiet about the disease, which of course we respect. However, the question of how much the patients themselves are aware of their disease remains open. On the other hand, patients are well aware that they are in hospital, but do not ask for details. This shows that, although they do not express it verbally, they are aware of the seriousness of their illness.
As a team caring for patients, we often emphasise the importance of being fully empathetic towards patients. The patient's family can also be an important part of this team. The patient's relatives are often an integral part of the patient's care and can be a support to the team caring for the patient. It is important that the family is included in the patient care process and supported during this difficult time.
As you can see, Monika is already at this stage, which is very beneficial for our teamwork. Monica is in this circle because we are a team that communicates with each other. This way, if any of us receives important information, we try to pass it on to the rest of the team.
This is a very difficult experience for those who are involved in caring for patients without a health policy. For these people, it is a great burden, as patients often treat them as loved ones and expect them to support them. For carers, it is an additional burden as they feel they have to meet the expectations of patients who no longer have other people to turn to for help.