Intervention in the grief process in Portugal by palliative care teams

• Autor(a) principal: Pimenta, Sofia
• Data de Publicação: 2020
• Outros Autores: Capelas, Manuel Luís
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: https://doi.org/10.34632/cadernosdesaude.2020.5281

Introduction: Palliative Care extends its practice towards the family. The latter finds itself in a position of risk, given the experience of his loved one's illness and resulting losses. The grieving process must, therefore, be accompanied, early and expertly, by the teams. These aim to favor the experience and conclusion of grief in a constructive way for the family.  Aim: To characterize the Portuguese palliative care teams' performance in the grief process and their evolution between the years 2017 and 2018.  Materials and Methods: The study consists of the application of a questionnaire, in years 2017 and 2018, to Portuguese palliative care teams, in order to characterize their role in the grieving process.  Results: In the two years, most teams have a formally defined grief support program. The set of mobilized activities, as well as their timing, varies. In the last year, the phone call and the follow-up consultation showed a reduction in their use. The latter showed unfavorable statistical significance in its annual aspect. Partaking in the activities, the spiritual assistant presented a positive evolution. The psychologist and the nurse were the ones who intervened most frequently, as well as the ones who registered them the most. In 2018 this practice reduced. There are several tools of registration used by the teams, the most used being Sclínico and minutes/paper.  Conclusion: Practice towards the mourning process has declined, taking into account most registered developments resulted from a deterioration in the quality of care provided by the teams.