| News for physicians caring for the seriously ill |  |
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- Surveying patients about pain management helpful, study says
A program in which palliative care nurses assessed cancer patients' knowledge of pain management helped in customizing educational interventions, according to a study in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management. Dr. Tone Rustoen of Oslo University said it was important that patients' knowledge be assessed rather than all of them being given a uniform introduction and the same information. News-Medical.Net/Medwire
(9/26)     
| Palliative & Hospice Care Update | | |
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- Misdiagnosis of sCJD delays palliative care efforts, report says
Patients with sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease are misdiagnosed four times on average before the disease is correctly identified, University of California, San Francisco, researchers reported. Commenting on the study in the Archives of Neurology, Dr. Richard Caselli of Mayo Clinic Arizona said health care providers "owe it to our patients and to society" to have the knowledge to diagnose sCJD efficiently so families can work with palliative care providers to maximize quality of life. Medscape (free registration)
(9/27)
- Brachytherapy has palliative benefits in laryngeal cancer, study says
High-dose and pulsed-dose brachytherapy offer acceptable toxicity levels and good palliative care for laryngeal cancer patients with stomal tumors following total laryngectomy, researchers reported in the journal The Laryngoscope. About 20% of patients in the study were in complete or partial remission following one of the treatments and mean survival was 12 months, compared with the usual six months. News-Medical.Net/medwireNews
(9/27)
| Patient & Family Perspective | | |
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- AHRQ drafts system for patients to report medical mistakes
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality is seeking approval on a prototype questionnaire that would encourage patients to report health care providers' errors and drug-related adverse events. The questionnaires or program information would be available at hospitals, doctors' offices and pharmacies and mailed to patients along with insurers' explanations of benefits. Researchers at the RAND Corp. and ECRI Institute would analyze the reports. The New York Times (tiered subscription model)
(9/22)
| Medical Research | | |
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- Experts examine drugs for neuropathic pain in diabetes
British researchers found amitriptyline, duloxetine and pregabalin fared better than placebo in relieving chronic diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain but did not observe significant differences between the three drugs. Pregabalin improved sleep continuity, while duloxetine helped boost patients' central nervous system arousal and sensory motor task performance, researchers reported in Diabetes Care. PhysiciansBriefing.com/HealthDay News
(9/26)
| Health Policy & Practice | | |
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- Few expect the entire ACA to be repealed
About 70% of Americans believe the Affordable Care Act will be implemented with some changes, and 12% believe the law will be overturned, an Associated Press-GfK poll found. Only 11% think the law will be implemented without changes, while 41% believe minor changes will be made and 31% expect major changes. Sixty-three percent said states should run health insurance exchanges. Yahoo!/The Associated Press
(9/26)
| AAHPM News | | |
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Pharmacomistakes in Hospice and Palliative Medicine
What are the 10 most commonly occurring medication errors ("pharmacomistakes") seen in end-of-life care? How do you prevent them? How can you correct them? Learn the answers to these and other questions at an upcoming AAHPM webinar with Dr. Mary Lynn McPherson. Learn more.
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HPM FAST 2nd edition modules now available
Want to test your knowledge of hospice and palliative medicine? Check out the newest editions of HPM FAST, online practice modules with 25 new or revised multiple choice questions for pediatrics, prognostication, and psychiatry and cognition. CMEs are available. Learn more.
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 | In the cellars of the night, when the mind starts moving around old trunks of bad times, the pain of this and the shame of that, the memory of a small boldness is a hand to hold."
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American critic
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