While many people cope with their grief associated with the loss of a loved one within 6-24 months after the loss, the bereavement process has been associated with developing emotional/behavioral problems, educational problems, and stress‐related medical conditions in bereaved siblings of children with cancer. Rasouli and colleagues (2022) sought to Continue reading →

A recent study of hospice patient care in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada found that older people (over age 85), ethnic minorities, and rural residents had unequal access to palliative care. These findings confirm that palliative care services reach a minority of those who need them. One Continue reading →

Music therapy, where patients and therapist engage actively in singing, song writing, improvisation, as well as listening to music, according to a person’s musical preferences, is increasingly being used in hospice and palliative care.  Research has shown that music therapy improves pain, agitation, and quality of life. Furthermore, it has Continue reading →

In recent times, the use of hospice care has been increasing around the world. Despite the increase in utilization rates of hospice services, there is a disparity that exists among non-Western minorities in accessing hospice and palliative care services. Individuals belonging to cultures from Africa, Asia, Australia, Latin America, and Continue reading →

Around 40 million individuals worldwide require palliative care. Over three-quarters of those needing palliative care are from low and middle-income countries (LMICs) where palliative care is still developing and is primarily limited to urban areas. A study conducted by Aregay et al., (2020) examined 30 research papers published between 1990 Continue reading →

Zaborowski and colleagues (2022) conducted a pilot study to examine the impact of education encouraging hospitalists to order palliative care consults within 3 days of patient admission to hospital. The goal was to optimize the benefits of palliative care by conducting a palliative consult sooner in the patient’s hospital stay. Continue reading →

Nutrition during palliative care focuses on both preventing malnutrition, but also on providing emotion and psychological comfort through eating foods associated with pleasure.  Chocolate has been associated with pleasure for some individuals, leading Vettori and colleagues (2022) to assess the effects of chocolate consumption on the nutritional status of older Continue reading →