The Ethics of Prioritizing Access to Palliative Care: A Qualitative Study

The American Journal of Hospice & Palliative Care
Jennifer PhilipVijaya Sundararajan

Abstract

This article sought to explore ethical issues associated with prioritization decisions in palliative care. As part of a broader series of studies of triage in palliative care, this qualitative substudy was conducted via semi-structured focus groups and individual interviews. Transcripts were subjected to thematic analysis. Twenty health professionals working across disciplines (primary, specialist; medicine, nursing, and allied health), service types (inpatient, hospital liaison, and community), and locations (metropolitan and rural) in Victoria, Australia. Four themes emerged from the data: (1) Clinicians understood the tension between maintaining service quality with the delivery of a compromised service that sought to respond to demand. (2) They were aware of the influences of relationships and responsibilities upon patient waiting list prioritization, and (3) reported a hierarchy of suffering with certain types of clinical problems viewed as more urgent than others, for example, pain being more urgent than existential distress. (4) Clinicians noted a lack of transparency around waiting lists as they currently exist. This study revealed key ethical decision-making issues associated with prioritizing access to palliative care...Continue Reading

References

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Apr 6, 2012·Journal of Palliative Medicine·Marita P McCabeDenisa L Goldhammer
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Aug 19, 2015·Nurse Education in Practice·Smita C BanerjeeCarma L Bylund
Feb 18, 2016·The American Journal of Hospice & Palliative Care·Frances R Nedjat-HaiemShiraz I Mishra

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Citations

Jan 23, 2021·Palliative Medicine·Bethany RussellVijaya Sundararajan
Apr 29, 2021·The American Journal of Hospice & Palliative Care·Yun Cai, Nasreen Lalani

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