Baycrest - End of Life Volunteer Manual
6
INTRODUCTION TO PALLIATIVE
CARE AND THE ROLE OF THE
VOLUNTEER
THE PHILOSOPHY AND GOALS OF PALLIATIVE CARE
WHAT IS PALLIATIVE CARE?
Palliative Care aims to relieve suffering and improve the quality of
living and dying by helping people with life-limiting and terminal
illnesses live as comfortably and fully as possible.
Palliative Care recognizes dying as a normal part of living. The
focus is on caring, not curing and on life, not death. The goal is to
reduce symptoms and distress, and provide comfort and support.
Palliative Care neither hastens nor postpones death.
Palliative Care is for the person him or herself. It is also for family
members and friends, helping them care for their loved one and for
themselves during times of grief.
Palliative Care strives to help patients and families in the following
ways:
• Address physical, psychological, social, spiritual and
practical issues as well as their expectations, needs, hopes
and fears
• Prepare for and manage the dying process
• Cope with loss and grief during illness and bereavement
Palliative Care uses a team approach to care and is only provided
when the person and/or family is prepared to accept it.
While Palliative Care is the nationally accepted term to describe
care aimed at relieving suffering and improving quality of life,
individual organizations may use
"hospice," "palliative," or "end
of life"
care – although end-of-life care usually focuses on the last
few weeks or months of life while Palliative Care focuses on the
needs of anyone diagnosed with a life-limiting illness.
