HOPE AND ACCEPTANCE AT THE END OF LIFE - IMPACT OF SPIRITUALITY ON PALLIATIVE CARE PATIENTS

Unidade Local de Saúde de Coimbra, EPE20 enrolled

Overview

This study aims to evaluate the hope and acceptance among patients visited by the Equipa Comunitária de Suporte em Cuidados Paliativos do Baixo Mondego. This study is a prospective longitudinal research study. The sample consisted of two groups: the Intervention Group, which included patients from the network of the Equipa Comunitária de Suporte em Cuidados Paliativos do Baixo Mondego (ECSCP-BM), and the Control Group, with selected patients from Unidade de Saúde Familiar Nautilus e Unidade de Saúde Familiar Coimbra Centro, with serious illness, comorbidities, and a poor prognosis. The patients chosen from ECSCP-BM were made up only of new patients referred to the team without any prior home consultations. The first questionnaire application took place during the first visit, and the second one was administered fourteen days later. The Primary Health Care patients were selected by invitation, and the questionnaire was administered. It included sociodemographic data, clinical data, the Herth Hope Index - PT and open questions.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

NON_RANDOMIZED

Purpose

HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH

Masking

SINGLE

Enrollment

Conditions

Hope Acceptance Spirituality

Interventions

Approach to spirituality through hope and acceptanceOTHER

This study is a prospective longitudinal research study. The sample consisted of two groups: the Intervention Group, which included patients from the community palliative care support team (ECSCP-BM), and the Control Group, with primary health care selected patients from the family health units Nautilus and Coimbra Centro (CSP), with serious illness, comorbidities, and a poor prognosis. The patients chosen from ECSCP-BM were made up only of new patients referred to the team without any prior home consultations. The first questionnaire application took place during the first visit, and the second one was administered fourteen days later. The Primary Health Care patients were selected by invitation, and the questionnaire was administered. It included sociodemographic data, clinical data, the Herth Hope Index and open questions. During the palliative care team's home visit, spirituality was addressed in in the clinical history through the assessment of hope and acceptance.

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 18 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * new referrals made by the family doctor to the community palliative care support team (which integrated the patient into the palliative care team network for the first time) - for the intervention group * patients registered at the Nautilus Family Health Unit or Coimbra Centro Family Health Unit with serious pathology, comorbidities and reserved prognosis - for the control group Exclusion Criteria: * age under 18 * pregnancy * altered state of consciousness or dementia * low level of education

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Hope

Participants answered questions on the Hope Scale. There were 9 questions with 4 possible answers. Each answer was scored from 1 to 4. The maximum score on the scale was 36.

Time frame: 5 months

Acceptance

Participants answered three open-ended questions to assess their acceptance. These questions were asked to the control group and at the first assessment of the intervention group. At the second assessment of the intervention group, after 14 days, a fourth question was also asked, assessing the team's intervention during those 14 days.