End-of-Life Care of Hospitalized Children with Advanced Heart Disease
child; heart diseases; palliative care; palliative medicine; terminal care
Lee J, et al. J Korean Med Sci. 2020 Feb;35(16):e107. https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2020.35.e107
Lee J; Kim G B; Song M K; Lee S Y; Kim M S; Bae E J
Journal of Korean Medical Science
2020
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2020.35.e107" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.3346/jkms.2020.35.e107</a>
Nurses' roles and challenges in providing end-of-life care in neonatal intensive care units in South Korea
End-of-life care; Neonates; Nicu; Nursing role; South Korea
BACKGROUND: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) nurses in Korea often experience challenges in providing care for dying infants and their families. However, there is limited understanding about what contributes to the challenges related to end-of-life care. PURPOSE: To describe NICU nurses' perceived roles and challenges faced while providing end-of-life care in South Korea. METHODS: A qualitative descriptive study was conducted with 20 NICU nurses in South Korea using semi-structured interviews. Participants were recruited from two NICUs in Seoul, where infant mortality is the highest in South Korea. Transcribed interviews were coded by two research personnel, and subsequently, a developed coding book was translated by three research personnel. The codes developed were categorized and peer-reviewed to develop themes using conventional content analysis. RESULTS: Nurses' roles during end-of-life care were grouped into four categories: providing information and support, enhancing attachment between the parents and infants, providing direct care to the infant, and completing documentation. Nurses' perceived challenges during end-of-life care included providing end-of-life care without adequate experience and knowledge, environmental constraints on end-of-life care, and conflicted situations during end-of-life care. CONCLUSION: Although the nurses provided the best care they could, their end-of-life care practice was hindered for various reasons. To enhance NICU nurses' ability to provide and make them more capable of providing high quality EOL care, hospitals need to support nurse education and improve staffing level, and create in NICUs an environment that is favorable for providing EOL care.
Kim S; Savage T A; Song M K; Vincent C; Park C G; Ferrans C E; Kavanaugh K
Applied Nursing Research
2019
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnr.2019.151204" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.1016/j.apnr.2019.151204</a>
Use of Palliative Care Consultation Services for Infants With Life-Threatening Conditions in a Metropolitan Hospital
consultation; infants; neonatal palliative care; palliative care
BACKGROUND: Palliative care is becoming an important component for infants with life-limiting or life-threatening conditions and their families. Yet palliative care practices appear to be inconsistent and sporadically used for infants. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to describe the use of an established pediatric palliative care team for seriously ill infants in a metropolitan hospital. METHODS: This was a retrospective medical record review. FINDINGS: The population included 64 infants who were admitted to a level IV neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and then died during hospitalization between January 2015 and December 2016. Most infants died in an ICU (n = 63, 95%), and only 20 infants (31%) received palliative care consultation. Most common reasons for consultation were care coordination, defining goals of care and end-of-life planning, and symptom management. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Palliative care consultation at this institution did not change the course of end-of-life care. Interventions provided by the ICU team to infants surrounding end of life were similar to those in infants receiving palliative care services from the specialists. Our findings may be useful for developing guidelines regarding how to best utilize palliative care services for infants with life-threatening conditions who are admitted to an ICU. IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH: These finding support continued research in neonatal palliative care, more specifically the impact of palliative care guidelines and algorithms.
McLaughlin S N; Song M K; Hertzberg V; Piazza A J
Advances in Neonatal Care
2020
Article information provided for research and reference use only. PedPalASCNET does not hold any rights over the resource listed here. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).
<a href="http://doi.org/10.1097/anc.0000000000000698" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">10.1097/anc.0000000000000698</a>