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Journal of Research and Reports in Gynecology and Obstetrics | Volume: 3
February 28-March 01, 2019 | Paris, France
Palliative Care, Obstetrics and Gynecology Stroke and Clinical Trials
International Conference on
Joint Event on
International Conference on
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Since ancient times, the obligation of the physician was
to relieve suffering. Despite this fact, little attention
was given to the problem of suffering and dying in medical
education, research or practice. In the 21st Century life
expectancy is increasing, more people live with serious
effects of chronic illnesses, and they must deal with many
complex issues: relief of symptoms, effect of the illness on
roles and relationships, restoring or maintaining quality of
life. Each of these issues creates expectations, needs, hopes
and fears, which must be addressed in order for the ill person
to adapt and continue living, and presents a set of public
health challenges requiring the attention of policy makers.
Traditionally end of life care in the form of palliative care has
been offered mostly to cancer patients. For some years this
kind of care has been offered for a wider range of serious
illnesses and was integrated more broadly across care
services.
Hospice was created as a coordinated program providing
palliative care to terminally ill patients and supportive
services to patients, families, 24 hours a day seven days a
week. Services are comprehensive, case managed based on
physical, social, spiritual and emotional needs during the
dying process by medically directed interdisciplinary team
consisting of patients, families, health care professionals and
volunteers (WHO).
Hospice treatment is the most personalized way to care,
by recognizing a patient not only like a body part, but as a
unique being, with soul and psyche. Each patient means a
new book to be read and understood by the team.
Accordingly, hospice care is flexible, and aggressive palliative
interventions have to answer some questions: What is the
goal of intervention?, does the intervention has a chance of
high efficacy?, what is the impact on the patient (side effects,
complications, discomfort)? what is the life expectancy? and
what does the patient want?
Hospice program is limited for those patients diagnosed with
terminal illness with a limited life spam and it is not a must
in health care system. Hospice is a choice and any individual
have the right, in conformity with the law, to decide how to
be treated when facing a terminal illness. Those patients
refusing to accept the imminence of death and want to
continue to fight they are not eligible for hospice. Those
prefer to concentrate on living as comfortably as they can
until their last day prefer the hospice care.
Speaker Biography
Michaela Bercovitch is the director of the Oncological Hospice in Sheba hospital, Tel
HaShomer, Israel and a lecturer at Tel Aviv University Sackler School of Medicine. In
1998 she initiated a 2-year comprehensive postgraduate course of Palliative Medicine
for doctors. She is involved in the education of medical students, nurses and doctors
across Israel. Her research fields include pain control, impact of high dose opioids on
patients’ survival, development of clinical auditing tools and a hospice oriented clinical
database. She is the author of the chapter discussing treatment of pain with TENS
(Oxford Textbook of Palliative Medicine), and other chapters addressing euthanasia,
non-pharmacological treatments for chronic pain, the role of the physician near
death, and the effect of patient-setting on the work of the team. She was a member
of the Directory of European Association for Palliative Care (2007-2016); Served as
the Chairperson of Israeli Palliative Medicine Society (2002-2016) focusing on the
recognition of Palliative Medicine as a sub-specialty and its inclusion as a government
fundsssed treatment. Along the years she has actively participated in the conception
and promulgation of the first Israeli law regarding the dying patient.
e:
Michaela Bercovitch
Tel Aviv University, Israel
Hospice - The right to choose
Michaela Bercovitch, Res Rep Gynaecol Obstet, Volume 3
DOI: 10.4066/2591-7366-C1-001