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Objectives: There is a growing consensus worldwide that palliative care needs to be both more inclusive of conditions other than cancer and to improve. This paper explores some common challenges currently faced by professionals providing palliative care for patients with either cancer or dementia across five countries. Method: One focus group (n = 7) and 67 interviews were conducted in 2012 across five countries: England, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Norway, with professionals from dementia, cancer and palliative care settings. Results: The interviews revealed five common challenges faced across the five countries: communication difficulties (between services; and between professionals, and patients and their families); the variable extent of structural/functional integration of services; the difficulties in funding of palliative care services; problematic processes of care (boundaries, definitions, knowledge, skills and inclusiveness) and, finally, time constraints. Conclusion: These are not problems distinct to palliative care, but they may have different origins and explanations compared to other areas of health care. This paper explored deeper themes hidden behind a discourse about barriers and facilitators to improving care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: research in care home settings is often negatively focused, portraying life as sterile and devoid of meaningful experiences. Care homes have the potential to influence people's lives socially, physically and psychologically. It is important to understand what factors contribute to this.Objective: to conduct a systematic qualitative review of care home life and provide practical recommendations to enhance residents' quality of life.Methods: the following databases were searched: PsycINFO, Medline, Web of Science, EMBASE, Allied and Complementary Medicine Database and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. References from appropriate journals and individual articles were checked. Papers that fitted our selection criteria were selected. Two independent reviewers assessed methodological study quality. Thematic analysis and meta-ethnographic methods were adapted to synthesise findings.Results: thirty-one studies were identified. People in care homes voiced concerns about lack of autonomy and difficulty in forming appropriate relationships with others. Four key themes were identified: (i) acceptance and adaptation, (ii) connectedness with others, (iii) a homelike environment, (iv) caring practices.Conclusion: positive experiences in care homes can occur and are important for residents' quality of life. The review supports literature highlighting the need for relationship-centred approaches to care and emphasises the importance of understanding the resident's attitude towards living in care homes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Children with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) experience numerous vulnerabilities during transitions from hospital to home during their first year of life. This paper examines the parents' responses to the situations they experience during the initial interstage transition as described through illness blogs. Design and methods: A qualitative descriptive design through inductive theme development using thematic analysis was performed for this study. Text data were used from publically available blogs written by parents of HLHS children on their feelings and experiences during transitions between hospital‐ and home‐care during the interstage period. Results: Six blogs were analyzed. Overall, the lack of difference in normalcy for these parents and their families was apparent. Major themes included: thoughts and feelings when discharged from the hospital, difficulties with hospital readmissions, protecting their child from infection, and developing a support system. Conclusions: Parents looked forward to going home and learned all they could about properly caring for their child before going home. They were disappointed and frustrated when returning to the hospital for either emergency or scheduled admissions and were not prepared to see their child in the intensive care unit environment again. Many parents isolated themselves and avoided the hospital as much as possible to avoid their child developing an infection. All parents had support systems through family and/or friends and found an unexpected sense of support through their blog families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]