The need for palliative care is now recognized by all European health policy-makers. They also know that 30 to 50 palliative beds per million people would be needed. In the realization, however, there are differences. The atmosphere of such a unit usually differs fundamentally from the usual „clinical character“. Patients, relatives, visitors and employees feel in this environment invited to talk and to stay. The positive side effect: one constant personal support by the relatives is guaranteed and helps the patients.
The nursing team usually consists of registered nurses, all of whom have several years‘ professional experience in a variety of specialist departments, e.g. cardiology, intensive care, gastroenterology or surgery. All members of the nursing team usually opted voluntarily and consciously for work on the palliative care unit. It is not the medically and technically feasible that is in the foreground, but the medically necessary and ethically justifiable. All employees should have completed the special palliative care training. The patient should be taken seriously in his holistic way with his physical, mental and mental-emotional problems and needs.
Palliative wards originated from the hospice movement. Your goal is to connect people with one to provide relief of the symptoms of advanced incurable disease, so that they spend the rest of their lives with the best possible quality of life can, and if that is no longer possible, have adequate space to dying to have available. By being integrated into the hospital, the patients of a palliative ward have all the possibilities of a hospital to disposal. However, the principle of diagnostic or therapeutic applies to apply measures only if they are on the one hand the will of the person concerned and on the other hand are likely to have a positive impact to have a quality of life.
Just as the word „palliative“ promises. With its Latin origin means literally „sheath it“. Figurative can hardly be expressed which means „security“. In English usage, there is the term „palliative care „, which includes care and caring as well as medical treatment includes. To put it succinctly, palliative care is considered clear. Cancellation of the so-called euthanasia. She supports and accompanies the patient in order to provide him with the best possible quality of life during his remaining time.
