TY - JOUR
T1 - Cooperating with a palliative home-care team
T2 - expectations and evaluations of GPs and district nurses
AU - Goldschmidt, Dorthe
AU - Groenvold, Mogens
AU - Johnsen, Anna Thit
AU - Strömgren, Annette S
AU - Krasnik, Allan
AU - Schmidt, Lone
PY - 2005/4
Y1 - 2005/4
N2 - BACKGROUND: Palliative home-care teams often cooperate with general practitioners (GPs) and district nurses. Our aim was to evaluate a palliative home-care team from the viewpoint of GPs and district nurses.METHODS: GPs and district nurses received questionnaires at the start of home-care and one month later. Questions focussed on benefits to patients, training issues for professionals and cooperation between the home-care team and the GP/ district nurse. A combination of closed- and open-ended questions was used.RESULTS: Response rate was 84% (467/553). Benefits to patients were experienced by 91 %, mainly due to improvement in symptom management, 'security', and accessibility of specialists in palliative care. After one month, 57% of the participants reported to have learnt aspects of palliative care, primarily symptom control, and 89% of them found cooperation satisfactory. Dissatisfaction was caused mainly by lack of information from the home-care team to primary-care professionals.CONCLUSION: GPs and district nurses welcomed the palliative home-care team and most experienced benefits to patients. Strengthened communication, initiated by the home-care team would enhance cooperation.
AB - BACKGROUND: Palliative home-care teams often cooperate with general practitioners (GPs) and district nurses. Our aim was to evaluate a palliative home-care team from the viewpoint of GPs and district nurses.METHODS: GPs and district nurses received questionnaires at the start of home-care and one month later. Questions focussed on benefits to patients, training issues for professionals and cooperation between the home-care team and the GP/ district nurse. A combination of closed- and open-ended questions was used.RESULTS: Response rate was 84% (467/553). Benefits to patients were experienced by 91 %, mainly due to improvement in symptom management, 'security', and accessibility of specialists in palliative care. After one month, 57% of the participants reported to have learnt aspects of palliative care, primarily symptom control, and 89% of them found cooperation satisfactory. Dissatisfaction was caused mainly by lack of information from the home-care team to primary-care professionals.CONCLUSION: GPs and district nurses welcomed the palliative home-care team and most experienced benefits to patients. Strengthened communication, initiated by the home-care team would enhance cooperation.
KW - Attitude of Health Personnel
KW - Community Health Nursing/organization & administration
KW - Denmark
KW - Family Practice/organization & administration
KW - Home Care Services/organization & administration
KW - Humans
KW - Interprofessional Relations
KW - Palliative Care/organization & administration
KW - Program Evaluation
KW - Prospective Studies
KW - Quality of Health Care
KW - Surveys and Questionnaires
U2 - 10.1191/0269216305pm1007oa
DO - 10.1191/0269216305pm1007oa
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 15920939
SN - 0269-2163
VL - 19
SP - 241
EP - 250
JO - Palliative Medicine
JF - Palliative Medicine
IS - 3
ER -