Abstract
Background:
In Denmark, persons diagnosed with life-threatening diseases are an essential key task in Danish Health system. Work carried out by health care professionals with these patients and their families requires specific professional expertise. A holistic approach focused on the physical, psychological, social and existential perspectives is necessary in order to be able to meet the needs of these people.
The health education programmes should therefore offer instruction in palliative care. On this background, University College Capital has developed an interdisciplinary elective course on palliative care.
Methods:
The physiotherapy, psychomotor-therapy and nursing programmes offer an interdisciplinary elective course in palliative care twice annually. The course consists of two weeks of theory followed by two weeks of clinical practice, and wraps up with two more weeks of theory. Throughout the course, the students work in interdisciplinary groups. The programme for the course has been developed on the basis of WHO’s definition of palliative care, with special emphasis on the interdisciplinary perspectives and activities in relation to the physical, psychological, social and spiritual areas.
Results:
The three courses that have been carried out with the participation of 60 nursing students, 12 physiotherapy students and two psychomotor- therapist students two students have shown that the students and staff from the three programmes have benefitted greatly from the different professional perspectives. Assessments of the course show that the elective contributes with increased knowledge, skills and competencies to interdisciplinary palliative care. The interdisciplinary work has strengthened the holistic perspective.
Conclusion:
Despite the rich traditions and dominance of nursing in the palliative area, the physiotherapy and psychomotor education programmes have made valuable contributions to developing the understanding of palliative care to the benefit of patients with life-threatening illnesses and their families.
In Denmark, persons diagnosed with life-threatening diseases are an essential key task in Danish Health system. Work carried out by health care professionals with these patients and their families requires specific professional expertise. A holistic approach focused on the physical, psychological, social and existential perspectives is necessary in order to be able to meet the needs of these people.
The health education programmes should therefore offer instruction in palliative care. On this background, University College Capital has developed an interdisciplinary elective course on palliative care.
Methods:
The physiotherapy, psychomotor-therapy and nursing programmes offer an interdisciplinary elective course in palliative care twice annually. The course consists of two weeks of theory followed by two weeks of clinical practice, and wraps up with two more weeks of theory. Throughout the course, the students work in interdisciplinary groups. The programme for the course has been developed on the basis of WHO’s definition of palliative care, with special emphasis on the interdisciplinary perspectives and activities in relation to the physical, psychological, social and spiritual areas.
Results:
The three courses that have been carried out with the participation of 60 nursing students, 12 physiotherapy students and two psychomotor- therapist students two students have shown that the students and staff from the three programmes have benefitted greatly from the different professional perspectives. Assessments of the course show that the elective contributes with increased knowledge, skills and competencies to interdisciplinary palliative care. The interdisciplinary work has strengthened the holistic perspective.
Conclusion:
Despite the rich traditions and dominance of nursing in the palliative area, the physiotherapy and psychomotor education programmes have made valuable contributions to developing the understanding of palliative care to the benefit of patients with life-threatening illnesses and their families.
| Translated title of the contribution | Tværfaglighed og palliativ omsorg - sammenhænge og udfordringer i grunduddannelser |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Publication date | 2015 |
| Publication status | Published - 2015 |
| Event | The 11th Palliative Care Congress - Glasgow, United Kingdom Duration: 9 Mar 2016 → 11 Mar 2016 |
Conference
| Conference | The 11th Palliative Care Congress |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
| City | Glasgow |
| Period | 09/03/16 → 11/03/16 |
Keywords
- palliation
- tværprofessionalitet