Medical decision-making in hospices from the viewpoint of physicians: results from two qualitative studies.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Physicians who practice in a hospice are responsible for working with patients and nursing staff to develop a medication plan, monitor symptoms and pain, and adjust medication if necessary. In inpatient hospices in Germany, physicians are part of a multi-professional approach, but not part of the hospice team itself. However, there is no, or hardly any, literature on medical practice in a hospice setting. Therefore, we wanted to know how physicians reflect upon their role in hospice within a multi-professional setting, how they communicate with patients, relatives, nursing staff and other physicians, and what the limitations of these communication processes are.

Methods

By means of two qualitative studies we explored how physicians classify their activities as par

SUBMITTER: Walker A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9464388 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature