Palliative care improving quality of life for chronically ill

While the week provides the perfect opportunity for friends and family to encourage people with life-limiting conditions to make their wishes known, this year’s theme also aims to promote a relationship between chronic illness and the role palliative care can play in supporting complex chronic illness symptom management.

Palliative Care CEO Liz Callaghan says the Australia Institute of Health and Welfare report on the Australian Burden of Disease Study-impact and causes of illness and death in Australia 2011 highlighted the proportion of people living with chronic disease (66 per cent) potentially missing out on palliative care support.

“This is why we have made chronic illness the focus of this year’s National Palliative Care Week.

“It is important for people with chronic disease and who have a fatal burden to have the same access to palliative care services as people with malignant disease,” Ms Callaghan says.

Four out of five deaths in Australia are caused by chronic illness, but there is a misconception that only cancer patients can access palliative care.

People with chronic illnesses often have more than one chronic illness which affects their health in different ways.

Palliative Care South Australia CEO Tracey Watters says:  “Early access to palliative care can assist people to have a higher quality of life for longer.

“We need the community to know that palliative care is not just for people who are going to die soon. Palliative care can help people to better manage their pain and other symptoms for improved quality of life.”

However, she highlights one size doesn’t fit all, with some South Australian chronic illness peak bodies identifying a lack of awareness by both health professionals and consumers, and unclear pathways to access support as barriers for people living with chronic illnesses.

Parkinson’s SA says it has great difficulty obtaining palliative care services for its clients.

One worker highlights they took great care explaining palliative care to a client who eventually allowed a referral to be made, only for it to be declined. 

Cystic Fibrosis Association SA (CF SA) field workers say Cystic Fibrosis (CF) sufferers are generally not very accepting of palliative care, shying away from it because of its association with end-of-life and death.

They feel CF SA field workers or clinicians involved in CF should be providing information over time, rather than as the last resort.

Vanessa Poulsen, Cardiovascular Health Project Officer explains the connection between palliative care and patients with heart failure is tricky because the disease trajectory does not follow a simple decline. This makes it difficult to know when to refer to palliative care.

“I have had past discussions with Heart Failure specialist nurses who have found barriers to accessing services via a Palliative care team to support the patient as they are not going to die soon and therefore don’t meet their referral requirements,” says Ms Poulsen.

Palliative Care services can also support the families and carers of those with chronic illnesses by offering a holistic model of care. 

More information on National Palliative Care Week and a calendar of events is available online.