We understand palliative care as all those therapeutic strategies that are applied to people who have a serious or terminal illness, such as cancer, so that they feel better and the illness affects them as little as possible.
This type of care is global, active, continuous and aims to improve the quality of life of people who find themselves in a difficult situation, their physical and psychological health, ensure their dignity, autonomy and also prevent or treat side effects derived from of the illness.
Thus, in addition to treating medical and physical problems, palliative care also serves to address all types of emotional, psychological, social or spiritual problems that the person may present. In short, any source of discomfort that the person may present and that is aggravated by the situation of severe illness.
It is precisely in the area of emotional problems where the psychology of palliative care can be of great help to any sick person and significantly contribute to improving their emotional state, as well as providing support and assistance to their families and even the health personnel who care for them.
What are the main functions of psychology in palliative care?
Both in its research and applied psychology aspects in the clinical context, palliative care psychology deploys several functions that aim to have a positive impact on both subjective aspects (such as the state of mind and the way in which it is interpreted). and what is happening is perceived) and in objective aspects (such as the way in which patients, family members and healthcare personnel relate to each other and their environment). In this sense, here you will find a summary of the main areas of work addressed from the psychology of palliative care.
As indicated, palliative care is a global, active and multidisciplinary intervention strategy for both the person who is suffering and the people around them going through a similar emotional process.
Supporting the family members of a sick person is of great importance for their mental health and also physics, something that is generally not taken into account in our society, although we see more and more advances in that sense.
One of the main tasks of psychologists in the field of palliative care is to accompany and provide support to family members who are going through intense grief, a grief that always begins before the death of the family member.
2. Adapt to the patient’s needs
An individualized intervention adapted at all times to the patient being treated is essential in any palliative care process from the field of psychology.
The professional psychologist is qualified to adapt at all times to essential variables such as the age or cognitive abilities of the person being cared for (essential in cases of dementia and neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s).
3. Help identify emotions
Emotional support is one of the key areas of palliative care from a psychological perspective, and especially support in the management of subjective aspects in awareness of death (both the mortality of oneself and that of loved ones).
This support is provided first by learning to identify the emotions that the person has, naming each one of them and facilitating their expression with the therapist, for subsequent analysis.
4. Train emotional control
Once the emotions that the person has have been identified, it is essential to teach various useful strategies and tools to regulate them, something that will have a very positive influence on the person’s mental health.
In this section it is also important to train the control of all types of thoughts and behaviors that can harm in some way the person who seems to be them or their environment.
5. Identify the patient’s priorities at all times
Helping to identify from the beginning the priorities of the person who is going through an illness is essential to provide them with the most appropriate and individualized support possible.
This is usually achieved through a process of psychological therapy in the form of a talk that consists of providing the most useful tools and strategies for the person to achieve put into words your priorities, needs, fears or concerns regarding death.
6. Emotional support
The emotional support provided by an expert psychologist in palliative care is also one of the important points in this type of intervention, which It usually focuses on treating any psychological alteration that the sick person may present.
There are many alterations that are addressed from psychology, among the most common we can find anxiety, cases of depression, stress, hostility or emotional lameness.
To successfully treat any of these alterations it is necessary, as professionals, have an extensive repertoire of social skills, among which empathy, active listening, basic communication tools, and not assuming anything that the person does not say stand out. And all this must be done avoiding giving false hope.
7. Detect harmful relationship dynamics
Detecting harmful emotional support dynamics between family members (even if they are well-intentioned) is also one of the essential tasks among psychology professionals.
Likewise, it is also of great importance to propose other more beneficial or constructive behaviors that replace these negative dynamics of emotional support.
8. Multidisciplinary work
We must keep in mind that palliative care They are always put into practice from a multidisciplinary strategy in which health professionals such as doctors, psychologists, nurses or physiotherapists intervene.
The psychologist’s job in this type of intervention is also to communicate important aspects about the patient’s condition to the rest of the health professionals in the palliative care units and maintain close professional contact. Likewise, the rest of the healthcare team must be informed of relevant sociocultural, spiritual or religious aspects that have been detected in the sick person or their family members, something relevant to the process of mourning through symbolic events and rituals.
