Palliative care provided by family and community doctors in primary health care in Brazil: A national survey

Background: The need for palliative care has increased whitin the scope of primary health care (PHC) in Brazil. Objective: To characterize the practice of palliative care provided by family and community doctors in primary health care in Brazil. Methods: Cross-sectional and descriptive study. Family...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autores: Wassmansdorf Mattos, Caroline, D'Agostini Derech, Rodrigo
Formato: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2020
País:Brasil
Recursos:Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina de Família e Comunidade (SBMFC)
Repositorio:Revista Brasileira de Medicina de Família e Comunidade (Online)
Idioma:portugués
OAI Identifier:oai:ojs.rbmfc.org.br:article/2094
Acesso em linha:https://rbmfc.org.br/rbmfc/article/view/2094
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:Palliative Care
Primary Health Care
Family Practice
Cuidados Paliativos
Atención Primaria de Salud
Medicina Familiar y Comunitaria
Atenção Primária à Saúde
Medicina de Família e Comunidade.
Descrição
Resumo:Background: The need for palliative care has increased whitin the scope of primary health care (PHC) in Brazil. Objective: To characterize the practice of palliative care provided by family and community doctors in primary health care in Brazil. Methods: Cross-sectional and descriptive study. Family and community doctors of PHC in Brazil answered a self-administered questionnaire, with questions involving the eight domains of the guidelines of National Consensus Project for Quality Palliative Care. Results: 87 responses from family doctors from 34 Brazilian cities were analyzed. Most respondents (92%) did not have a palliative care discipline at graduation. There is little use of validated tools for the analysis of patients’ pain and functionality. There is little availability of multidisciplinary team trained in PHC. There is a deficit in communication between physicians, patients and family members. There is low availability of medications for symptomatic control of pain and dyspnea in palliative patients in primary care. Conclusion: There is some provision of palliative care in primary health care, but with insufficiency. Difficulties in medical training, poor availability of supplies and human material may hinder a better offer of primary palliative care in Brazil.