Cuidados paliativos, do passado à atualidade

: relatório de estágio, em unidades de cuidados paliativos

Abstract

The rise in average life expectancy and chronic and degenerative diseases, together with the great technical and scientific advance, has led to pathology development in any phase of the life cycle and therefore to the aggravation of the degree of dependence. Given the high complexity of palliative patients and their families’ needs, the need for a structured and specific approach is both evident and obvious. The rationale behind the relevance of the internship, developed under the scope of the Master’s Degree in Palliative Care from the Health Sciences Institute of Porto (Instituto de Ciências da Saúde do Porto), from the Catholic University of Portugal (Universidade Católica Portuguesa), is based on the acquisition and/or development of professional skills in the field of Palliative Care, and the aim of this report is to depict the journey accomplished as well as the consolidation of developed skills. In order to embrace different typologies of care, the 340 hour internship was divided between the Palliative Care Department from the Domus Fraternitas Foundation (Unidade de Cuidados Paliativos da Fundação Domus Fraternitas), in Braga (Portugal), the participation in the course “La atención humana a la persona mayor en residenciais” and in the “XVIII Jornadas Nacionales de Alzheimer” (18th Alzheimer Days) at the Centro de Humanización de la Salud, in Madrid (Spain), and finally, the Palliative Care Internal Support Team from the Matosinhos Local Healthcare Unit, as well as the provision of domiciliary palliative care services. This document uses a descriptive and reflexive methodology, and presents the testimonies, contributions, professional apprenticeships and achievements acquired along the internships. Particular emphasis is placed on the reflection about the developed activities, specially scientific, technical and relational, based on the performance in Palliative Care, communication, symptom control, family engagement and care, and teamwork. The relationship with imminent death patients, experienced time and time again along this journey, resulted in a deep and intimate reflection which allowed me to develop a professional maturity I didn’t have until then. Therefore, I emphasise as main skills those acquired in the field of communication between patient and family, namely the bad news communication, the symptom control though drug handling and pharmacokinetics, the patient and family care to promote comfort, well-being and quality of life, the intervention in destress and grief support, and finally the teamwork.

Date of Award	20 Jul 2017
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Sílvia Coelho (Supervisor)