Sedation in specialized palliative care: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Palliative sedation is used to relieve refractory symptoms and is part of clinical practice in Sweden. Yet we do not know how frequently this practice occurs, how decision-making takes place, or even which medications are preferentially used. OBJECTIVES: To understand the current practice of palliative sedation in Sweden. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional medical record-based study. For 690 consecutive deceased patients from 11 of 12 specialized palliative care units in the southernmost region of Sweden who underwent palliative sedation during 2016, we collected data on whether the patient died during sedation and, for sedated patients, the decision-making process, medication used, and depth of sedation. RESULTS: Eight percent of patients were sedated. Almost all (94%) were given midazolam, sometimes in combination with propofol. The proportions of sedation were similar in the patient groups with and without cancer. The largest proportion of the sedated patients died in inpatient care, but 23% died at home, with specialized palliative home care. Among the patients with a decision to sedate, 42% died deeply unconscious, while for those without such a decision the corresponding figure was 16%. In only one case was there more than one physician involved in the decision to use palliative sedation. CONCLUSION: 8% of patients in specialized palliative care received palliative sedation, which is lower than international measures but much increased compared to an earlier Swedish assessment. The level of consciousness achieved often did not correspond to the planned level; this, together with indications of a scattered decision process, shows a need for clear guidelines.

Ambulance nurses' experiences of nursing critically ill and injured children: A difficult aspect of ambulance nursing care.

BACKGROUND: Ambulance nurses work daily in both emergency and non-emergency situations that can be demanding. One emotionally demanding situation for ambulance nurses is to nurse children who are ill. AIM: The aim of this study was to describe ambulance nurses' experiences of nursing critically ill or injured children. METHOD: Eight specialist ambulance nurses were interviewed and the interviews were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. FINDINGS: The analysis resulted in one theme, a difficult aspect of ambulance nursing care, with five categories. The security of both child and parents was considered to be paramount. Ambulance nurses felt relieved when they handed over the responsibility and the child to the receiving unit. The ambulance nurses felt that more training, education and follow-up was desirable in order to increase their security when nursing children. CONCLUSION: Ambulance nurses are subject to stressful feelings while nursing children. As providing reassurance to the child and its parents is a cornerstone of the treatment, it is important for the ambulance nurses to take the time to build up a trusting relationship in such an encounter. Skill development in the area might lead to increased security and reduce the mental burden resulting from negative stress.