End-of-Life Care (EoLC)

End-of-Life Care (EoLC) is specialist medical treatment provided to people who have serious illnesses that have progressed to an incurable stage. Palliative care is intended to make the patient more comfortable in order to manage pain and other stressful circumstances. This type of responsibility is available at nursing homes, hospitals, and hospices. While many people would prefer to be cared for at home, this is not always possible for a variety of reasons.

Professionals and physicians who are informed about the patient's requirements and needs provide care in hospitals and hospices. Terminally ill patients have alterations in breathing patterns, a difficulty to absorb meals, and a loud respiration system, necessitating close monitoring. These professionals are available throughout unlike homes where caregivers may not monitor the patients thought. Care centers also provide support to the family during the patient's illness to bereavement. It is only the hospitals that offer such psychological help to the affected families. Reducing the family burden on the expenses of the patient is another reason why families opt for End-of-Life Care away from their homes. Medical expenses, special diet provision, and frequent checkups are less costly when a terminally ill patient is in a caregiving center than at home.

Therefore, as a nurse, it would be my responsibility to initiate discussions with the patient together with the family to explain the illness, and the implications in a language they would understand. To the patient, it would be essential to emphasize the quality of life and administer life-sustaining measures like a feeding tube, mechanical ventilation, Psychological healing and the spiritual concerns of the patient (Cohen, & Deliens, 2012). These steps should be able to guarantee the patient to make the best of every dawning day as he or she approaches death.

References

Cohen, J., & Deliens, L. (2012). A public health perspective on end of life care. Oxford: Oxford University Press.