What are current Hospice issues?

[kahumai, RN]

I'm doing an Issue Paper for school on something pertaining to nursing that's like a 'hot topic' right now. (Examples: liver transplant for alcoholics, stem-cell research, needle exchange programs for drug users, etc.) I was thinking about maybe doing on something related to Hospice nursing. Any thoughts? Is there something maybe pertaining to "how much morphine is too much?" that can be debated? Tube placement? :)

[Penguinurse]

Hope this still helps, since it's been a few weeks since you posted, but I think a really hot topic (which I recently had a bad experience with) is palliative sedation. It's the process of sedating patients to control symptoms, sometimes for days or weeks at a time. Lots and lots of discussion on the net, and lots of ethical debate. Good luck with your paper!

[leslie :-D]

i agree with penguinurse about conscious sedation-so many are against it but if that's all you can do to control one's pain, then you do it.

i have problems with those doctors that underprescribe, therefore the pt. does not get any pain relief; or the doctors that still don't get the concept of hospice and agree with continuing tube fdgs even though the pt is c/o nausea w/diminished bowel sounds and a distended abdomen. the doctors listen to the family rather than physically come in and evaluate the patient.

or getting families to accept that their loved one will die and they're still in such denial.

there are so many aspects of hospice that can be frustrating to deal with.

good luck to you.

leslie