Diversity and the Undertreatment of Pain

The undertreatment of pain is a major public health problem and has enormous costs -- to the individual, the health care system and society. Undertreatment is complex and many studies have clarified the factors that may contribute. Clinicians who become aware of these factors are better able to assess accurately, treat appropriately, and educate about pain. Among other factors, undertreatmentof pain has been associated with race, sex, ethnicity, and culture

Palliative Sedation: A View through the Kaleidoscope

Abstract This textbook on palliative social work is a companion volume to the Oxford Textbook of Palliative Medicine and the Oxford Textbook of Palliative Nursing. To that end, this chapter will accomplish the following:</jats:p

Social work in palliative care

The early link of palliative social work clinicians in the United Kingdom and the United States provided a foundation for the evolving specialty of social work in palliative care which continues to be enriched by social work practitioners across the world. Social workers practise in diverse settings and have the opportunity to move palliative care values and processes beyond hospitals and hospices to nursing homes, prisons, and senior centres. This chapter discuss how palliative care social work skills are a rich opportunity to serve patients, families, teams, and institutions. It begins with a section introducing social work in palliative care and moves on to discuss the convergence and synergy of social work with palliative care. Issues such as assessment and intervention (including confidentiality, assessment, culture, and family meetings) are then introduced and roles and responsibilities in social work teams are discussed. Finally a patient family narrative is presented.</p