Università degli studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia

Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia
Corso di laurea in infermieristica - Sede di Modena

Abstract

Introduction Palliative care is the set of therapeutic, diagnostic and assistance interventions, applied both at the sick person and at his family unit. Palliative care intends to offer sick people a dignified death, preserving their dignity alongside the people who matter most to them. The greatest contribution in Italy was made by Law n.38 of 2010, which clarifies and guarantees the right of all citizens to have access to palliative care and pain therapy. Objective The main purpose of the literature review was to investigate the effects of palliative care applied to critically ill adults and to assess its impact on the outcomes both, for patients and families. Method A research was carried out on the following databases: Cochrane Library, PubMed, CINAHL and PsycINFO, using the PICOS method and according to the PRISMA Guidelines. Results At the end of the selection, 22 studies were included, although some of these were not found to be of high quality. From the results it comes out that in the literature there is still little talk of the end of life in intensive care and the need for palliative care is not recognized early and applied correctly through a remodeling of drug therapy and the reduction of intensification of care, which seems inappropriate and excessive for such situations. Nurses report the need for more training in order to be to apply palliative care in the ICU. Conclusions This review shows how little is known and applied as far as this topic, in intensive care, is concerned. It is essential to implement corporate protocols and / or procedures and train health professionals, to achieve a real change of culture in clinical practice, to improve the quality of care.