You are still you.

I have been working a lot lately in the world of palliative care and have learned a few things. 

I learned that palliative care is just that - a care plan. Yet we often phrase it “you have been deemed palliative” or “you are palliative”. In so many ways we are reducing that person to that one thing - that one concept. I had heard about this idea in class and read the theories but until I actually SAW it happen I didn’t realize the impact it had. 

I was caring for a patient who had been deemed palliative and they thought that was all they were. Their perspective was that everything was being taken away and everyone had given up. They made very clear that they hated using that word "palliative".

When it was explained “you are still who you are...... palliation - it’s an approach - so that when new HCP* join your team they have an idea of what your goals are. But that does not define you - You are still you.” I fully watched the pts expression change and it looked as if their whole body relaxed - so much tension was held over that label. 

That really challenged me as a nurse and how my communication impact the patients view of themselves. It reminded me of an idea or thought that was explained at a conference. Palliative care and treatment can go together - working side by side to produce the best care of comfort to create a current trajectory of excellent quality of life. 

It also challenged me to recognize labels that I might be putting on a person. It reminded me to always first look at my patient as a person, to see who they are. This patient was challenging but I was shown how to see them and how big of a difference that can make; to look past their fears and their projections and see them as human, a human like me.

It challenged me to approach my conversations regarding palliative care in a different light. To make it as clear as possible that palliative care is a care plan that promotes quality of life. Time with family and friends. Time to leave behind a legacy of who they are - to reflect and explore their impact on the people they love the most. Yes, most people who have a palliative care plan are dying but until they are dead they have time to live. My job is to provide the best tools and services I can offer so they can do it well. 

*HCP Health Care Professional