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Palliative care: Issues specific to geriatric patients

INTRODUCTION

Palliative care is an interdisciplinary medical specialty that focuses on preventing and relieving suffering and on supporting the best possible quality of life for patients and their families facing serious illness. The primary tenets of palliative care are symptom management; establishing goals of care that are in keeping with the patient’s values and preferences; consistent and sustained communication between the patient and all those involved in his or her care; psychosocial, spiritual, and practical support both to patients and their family caregivers; and coordination across sites of care.

While palliative care was once considered to be synonymous with end of life care (which was often delivered in a hospice setting), it is now recognized that palliative care can be appropriately offered to patients at any time along the trajectory of any type of life threatening illness, even concurrent with restorative, life-prolonging therapies. (See "Palliative care: Overview of patient assessment", section on 'Definitions: palliative care versus end of life/hospice care'.)

Most serious, chronic illness in the United States, Europe, and other developed countries occurs in those aged 65 years and older. These older individuals often live with and die from chronic illnesses that are preceded by long periods of physical decline and functional impairment. Thus, providing medical care for the elderly often involves medically and ethically complex decision-making, requiring consideration of patients' multiple comorbid conditions, their quality of life, and their wishes regarding treatments.

Establishing the goals of care is of the utmost importance when treating older adults with life-limiting illnesses. Depending upon the circumstances, this may be done directly with the patient or may require a surrogate decision-maker.

Issues in symptom assessment and management that are primarily applicable to the older adult will be reviewed here. General aspects of palliative care relating to decision-making that are relevant to the geriatric population (eg, advance directives) and issues relevant to assessment and management of symptoms during end of life care are discussed separately:

       

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Literature review current through: Apr 2012. | This topic last updated: Aug 11, 2010.
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