Role Of Effective Communication In Palliative Care

Employ a range of communication strategies and processes which are central to the work in palliative care
Effective communication such as compassion, sensitivity, honesty and confidentiality are very important for those who are diagnosed with life limiting illness as they will go through a range of emotions such as anger, fear, sadness and confusion. Effective communication is very important for Individuals who have hearing impairment or speech difficulties. To be able to communicate effectively there must be no background noises, talk slowly and clearly and repeat if necessary. Personal strengths and weakness in communicating with a dying person and their family is to communicate by showing sympathy and empathy, introduce yourself and explain
During the time you spend with the patient you may observe them in pain or they may tell you they have pain and maybe they didn’t tell anyone else, so it is vital that you report this to the nurse in charge. Coming to the end of life it is common for the patient to experience fatigue. The role of the support worker is to keep activities simple for example using a commode instead of walking to the bathroom and doing a bed bath instead of a shower. The role of the HCA is to report to the nurse if the patient is experiencing nausea or vomiting also to report latest bowel movements and to make the patient as comfortable as possible. For example the role of the HCA is to address breathlessness as soon as distress becomes apparent rather than letting it go too far for example raise the head of the bed, put patient in a sitting upright position, keep the room cool, open the window a little and also the use of nebulizers or oxygen. The role of the HCA in meeting the needs of a patient with diarrhoea is to check for excoriation of the skin particularly in the sacral area, apply barrier cream and reposition frequently. A person that is on a high dose of opiods are at risk of constipation they would be given enemas or suppositories. The role of the HCA is to encourage oral fluids as this is essential to produce saliva and prevent the mouth from drying out. If the patient cannot tolerate oral fluids it is important for the HCA to provide oral hygiene every two hours and to keep dentures clean and free from bacteria to prevent sore or a dry mouth. If the HCA observed the patient with swallowing difficulties it should be reported back to the nurse if the patient was already on thicken fluids to reduce the risk of aspiration. The decision about clinically assisted hydration and nutrition treatment, taking into account the individuals prior