Rapid Review of Psychological and Nursing Support in Cancer Patients

This nursing assignment report focuses on the impact of psychological and social support strategies provided by nurses to cancer patients within palliative care units. The report begins with background information on palliative care, emphasizing its role in symptom relief and improving the quality of life for patients with terminal illnesses, particularly cancer patients. It highlights the importance of addressing the emotional and social needs of patients and their families, often overlooked due to the association of palliative care with end-of-life scenarios. The research question explores the effects of these support strategies on cancer patients within the palliative care unit, leading to a PICO question that defines the population (cancer patients), intervention (psychological and social support by nurses), control (patients with other illnesses), and outcome (reduction of emotional distress). The purpose of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of nursing staff's psychological and social support strategies during the treatment process in palliative care. The report includes relevant references to support the arguments. The assignment also includes a project proposal for a rapid review, detailing the project title, objectives, keywords, and background information, including a discussion of medication administration errors and the importance of evidence-based practice in clinical settings.

Running head: NURSING ASSIGNMENT
NURSING ASSIGNMENT
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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Background:
According to Gotze et al. (2014) palliative care is specifically aimed at reliving
symptoms of terminal illness so as to improve the quality of living in patients. As stated by (),
palliative care can be used at any stage of illness so as to foster relief from the symptoms of
pain and suffering. Research studies state that palliative care is extensively offered to cancer
patients so as to control the side effects of the cancer treatments and foster an improved
quality of life even when the suffering is inevitable and irreversible (Rushton et al., 2013;
Gotze et al., 2014). However, it should be noted in this context that palliative care in most
cases is perceived similar to end of life care and is not accepted by the patients or the family
members of the patients for the fear of death and loss of a loved one. Psychological and social
support strategies by nurses can effectively help in the patient counselling procedure and
improved patient outcome within the palliative care unit.
On the basis of the background information, the research question that can be framed
for the rapid review of scholarly literatures can be stated as:
RQ: What are the effects of the psychological and nursing support strategies on patients
diagnosed with cancer in their treatment process within the palliative care unit?
On the basis of the research question, the PICO question can be articulated as follows:
P: Population: The population comprises of the cancer patients placed in the palliative care
unit
I: Intervention: The intervention being given is the psychological and social support by the
nurses
C: Control: The control subject would include patients with illnesses other than cancer placed
in the palliative care unit

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O: Outcome: The outcome being evaluated is the reduction of emotional distress
Purpose:
The purpose of the research study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the psychological
and social support strategies offered by nursing staff to the patients diagnosed with cancer
during the treatment procedure within the palliative care unit.

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References:
Götze, H., Brähler, E., Gansera, L., Polze, N., &Köhler, N. (2014). Psychological distress and
quality of life of palliative cancer patients and their caring relatives during home
care. Supportive Care in Cancer, 22(10), 2775-2782.
Rushton, C. H., Kaszniak, A. W., & Halifax, J. S. (2013). A framework for understanding
moral distress among palliative care clinicians. Journal of Palliative Medicine, 16(9),
1074-1079.