Cuidados Paliativos e Medicina

Abstrato

Palliative Care to the Cancer Patient: Turkish Nurses Perspectives

Fusun Terzioglu, Fatma Uslu Sahan, Handan Boztepe

Palliative care is recognized as an essential component of cancer care in Turkey. The Cancer Control Department of The Turkish Ministry of Health launched the nurse and society-based Pallia-Turk Project in 2010. Nurses play the most important role and bear the most important responsibilities in this project. Because nurses are in contact with patients at all stages of cancer during treatment, they are to be more proactive and innovative to maximize the quality of life of cancer patients and their families. However, challenges in palliative care nursing practices in Turkey can reduce the quality of care given to patients and their families. The most significant barriers to the development of palliative care nursing were identified as the lack of palliative care education and training programs, limited research about palliative care nursing, lack of public awareness, and inadequate legislation about palliative care services. In this article, it is intended to provide information about the current state of palliative care services and palliative care nursing in Turkey.