Understanding Palliative Care - What Calgary Residents Need to Know
Palliative care is significant but commonly misconceived in medical and therapeutic aspects of health. Services of palliative care are crucial for those suffering from life-endangering sickness in Calgary and several parts of the world. The aim of this care is to manage the patients and their families with specific symptoms and improve their lifestyle according to the health parameters. Also, ameliorates health issues by offering extensive assistance to every patient in society, especially the residents. This blog intends to enhance the understanding of citizens of Calgary about palliative care and its impact on patients and their families along with diagnostic and remedial services in the city.
Basics of Palliative Care:
Palliative care is a special strategy of medicine drafted and executed to support patients with life-limiting illnesses to enjoy the beauties of life. Palliative care in Calgary focuses on prioritizing quality and comfort of life over other curative treatments, which aim to uproot the disease. It necessitates treating each symptom, including pain, nausea, constipation, issues in breathing, loss of appetite, stiffness in muscles, and sleeping disorders.
Principles of Palliative Care:
Patient-Centric Care:
While providing palliative care, all services are designed specifically for the patients according to their needs and symptoms, and these symptoms are taken into account for making treatment plans. This approach is individualized as this revolves around the patient’s specifications and comfort zone.
Dedication of Team:
A team of dedicated physicians, expert nurses, social workers, and spiritual healers work together with health care professionals to offer their time and services of palliative care in Calgary. This team works in collaboration with each other by considering general health principles.
Integral Support:
Palliative care validates an integral approach that aids the person by targeting emotional, spiritual, and social aspects of patient care besides physical symptoms as the physical and spiritual fitness of a person is equally important in palliative care.
Quality Life:
The central objective of palliative care is to reinforce the quality of life of all patients and their families who are in distress. Efficacious symptom management in addition to emotional and psychological treatment also plays a vital role in this regard.
Assistance for Families:
Palliative care in Calgary is far outstretched to the families of patients as well, from guidance and support to dealing with their emotional trauma is the prime focus of these services. Moreover, respite in hardships and challenging times is necessary and the palliative care team is always attentive to serve the families.
Palliative Care Calgary: Who can benefit:
Irrespective of age group or disease stage, a person whose life is at stake with life threatning illness can step forward for palliative care as this care is helpful for many conditions which are discussed as follows:
- Patients with cancer.
- Patients suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
- Renal function disorder.
- Patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis disease or ALS
- Disease of multiple sclerosis.
Palliative care is not only for the patients who are in the last stage of the disease but also for the ones who prefer curative treatment to improve the quality of their lives. Furthermore, longer survival times and symptom control can eventually be achieved by the early inclusion of palliative care services.
Special Palliative Care Assistance in Calgary:
Several palliative care choices are available in Calgary to serve patients and families. Likewise, care homes, hospitals, outpatient clinics, and residences of patients are only a few of the locations where such services are offered.
Hospice Services:
Patients close to the final stage of their lives can move to a professional and supportive environment in any of the hospices in Calgary. These hospices offer treatment and attention to symptom and pain management in addition to emotional and family care.
Palliative Care at the Doorstep:
Truly Home Care Services is eager to provide support and care to patients searching for palliative care at their doorstep. Patients can be diagnosed and attended to at their place of comfort and this is an admirable stance of home-based palliative services in Calgary. Frequent visits of health professionals, physicians, and paramedical staff are part of the planning team.
Units of Palliative Care Calgary:
In Calgary, there are a few hospitals with special palliative care units where patients can receive expert advice and treatment in order to get rid of their symptoms or any other assistance for their health. These units with specialists guarantee a high degree of care and medical support as much as possible to save any life.
Outpatient Clinics:
Patients who are not in critical circumstances to be admitted to the hospital can get regular support for their care at outpatient clinics. These clinics provide services of counseling and multiple forms of support with managing symptoms and medication.
How to Access Palliative Care in Calgary:
Palliative care Calgary can be accessed by following certain steps which are mentioned here to help the citizens in locating and accessing the process.
Consultation With a Medical Practitioner:
For palliative care alternatives, the initial step is to discuss with a medical expert the seriousness of a disease that you or your loved one is suffering from. Accessibility of palliative care is only possible after the referral of a health care professional because soon after the diagnosis, your medical practitioner will guide you to go for palliative care services.
Recommendation for Palliative Care in Calgary:
After the initial correspondence, you will be recommended to palliative care services by your medical practitioner. Indeed, palliative care is a special service that is located in hospitals, home care units, hospices, or outpatient clinics and can be referred to in case of any emergency.
Assessing and Planning:
Soon after the referral, the palliative care team will make an individual care plan according to the needs of the patient. This plan will include all symptoms, choices, priorities, and other concerns a patient has.
Regular Support with Follow-up:
This is a continuous process that is executed according to the needs and conditions of a patient. Any adjustments in care planning or resource allocation in the responsibility of the palliative care team as their research and development unit is engaged in a consistent evaluation of shortcomings.
Misunderstanding About Palliative Care:
Apart from several advantages, palliative care is sometimes misunderstood. To help the citizens of Calgary, it is the need of the hour to make people aware of prevalent misconceptions.
- People think this is the end of life care rather this particular care can be opted for at any point of illness.
- A myth that it is only for hopeless patients is also not genuine as it focuses on the improved quality of life.
- It is not limited to cancer patients only but patients of kidney failure, lung disease, and others can also get benefits.
- Public health care plans are also supportive for patients who believe that this is an expensive treatment. Alberta Health Services in Calgary provides public funding for the patients.
To sum up, citizens with serious health issues can avail the services of palliative care in Calgary, and patients themselves should be well-read about the significance of treatment. With the help of symptom management, psychological measures, and coordination between patients and their families, Palliative Care Calgary assists and improves the quality of life. Here at Truly Home Care Services, we go above and beyond traditional caregiving by offering home care services that are available around-the-clock for your peace of mind. Our dedication to openness, dependability, and cost-effectiveness distinguishes us and guarantees that your loved ones get the high-quality care they need. Truly Home Care Services is your partner in fostering seniors’ freedom and well-being in Calgary. Experience the difference that compassionate care can make.