Palliative Care Unit
31.01.2022

Palliative care is defined by World Health Organization (WHO) as an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problem associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other problems that can be physical, psychosocial or spiritual.

Palliative care includes approaches beginning in early stage of illnessin life-threatening diseases that can be implemented together with other treatments and that are directed toward prolonging length of life.(WHO)

Every individual has the right to be treated respectfully and to die. Elimination of pain and physical, emotional, spiritual and social distresses is a human right.

Palliative care provides relief from pain and other distressing symptoms.

It affirms life and regards dying as a normal process. It intends neither to hasten nor postpone death.

It integrates the psychological and spiritual aspects of patient care

It offers a support system to help patients live as actively as possible until death.

WHAT DOES PALLIATIVE CARE PROVIDE TO PATIENTS?
It helps patient to gather his/her strength and find his/her inner peace in order to be able to continue his/her daily life.
It helps to tolerate medical treatments.
It helps patient to better understand care alternatives.

WHAT DOES PALLIATIVE CARE PROVIDE TO FAMILY OF PATIENT?
It helps families to better understand care alternatives.
It improves the daily life of patient and in this way reduces concerns of relatives.

WHICH PATIENT GROUPS DOES PALLIATIVE CARE PROVIDE SERVICE TO?
Intensive care patients (education, treatment completion, social, etc.)
Oncology patients (who worsen clinically and in terms of laboratory test results and whose symptoms increase)
Advanced stage heart insufficiency
Advanced stage COPD
End stage kidney-liver insufficiency
Progressive neurologic diseases (Alzheimer, dementia, etc.)
Chronic neurologic diseases (Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy, stroke, Parkinson’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, etc.)

PATIENTS WITH MALNUTRITION
In our hospital, palliative care unit with a capacity of 30 beds has been providing service for our public since 02.19.2015. In our palliative care services, treatment and care service is given to approximately 500 patients per year with an occupancy rate of98%. Doctor, nurse, psychologist, dietitian, physiotherapist, geriatric care technician and social service specialist are found in our palliative care team. Our team evaluates patient and his/her family as a whole.

Service is given with multi-disciplinary team sense and holistic approach by taking all kinds of precautionsfor 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.