Perspectives of nursing home executives on collaboration with GPs and specialist palliative care teams

TY - JOUR

T1 - Perspectives of nursing home executives on collaboration with GPs and specialist palliative care teams

AU - Müller, Evelyn

AU - Vogel, Lena

AU - Nury, Edris

AU - Seibel, Katharina

AU - Becker, Gerhild

PY - 2024/2

Y1 - 2024/2

N2 - Background: Nursing home (NH) staff, general practitioners (GPs) and specialist outpatient palliative care teams are expected to cooperate to ensure adequate palliative care for NH residents in Germany. Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the perspective of NH executives concerning collaboration with GPs and specialist outpatient palliative care teams. Methods: We conducted semi-structured telephone interviews with executives of NHs in the federal state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. Interviews were analysed by means of structured content analyses. Results: Executives of 20 NHs participated in the study, eight NHs cooperate with specialist outpatient palliative care teams. Content analysis resulted in two main categories: 'general palliative care by primary carers' and 'collaboration with SAPV in NHs', each with three first-order subcategories. The main barriers to adequate palliative care were reported to be lack of palliative care knowledge in GPs and NH staff, refusal of some GPs to cooperate with specialist outpatient palliative care teams and staff shortage in NHs. Specialist palliative care involvement was described to result in improved palliative care. Conclusion: Solutions seem obvious, e.g., further education in palliative care or round tables to discuss collaboration. However, studies show that even comprehensive educational and management interventions to implement palliative care do not always result in long-term effects and further research is needed.

AB - Background: Nursing home (NH) staff, general practitioners (GPs) and specialist outpatient palliative care teams are expected to cooperate to ensure adequate palliative care for NH residents in Germany. Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the perspective of NH executives concerning collaboration with GPs and specialist outpatient palliative care teams. Methods: We conducted semi-structured telephone interviews with executives of NHs in the federal state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. Interviews were analysed by means of structured content analyses. Results: Executives of 20 NHs participated in the study, eight NHs cooperate with specialist outpatient palliative care teams. Content analysis resulted in two main categories: 'general palliative care by primary carers' and 'collaboration with SAPV in NHs', each with three first-order subcategories. The main barriers to adequate palliative care were reported to be lack of palliative care knowledge in GPs and NH staff, refusal of some GPs to cooperate with specialist outpatient palliative care teams and staff shortage in NHs. Specialist palliative care involvement was described to result in improved palliative care. Conclusion: Solutions seem obvious, e.g., further education in palliative care or round tables to discuss collaboration. However, studies show that even comprehensive educational and management interventions to implement palliative care do not always result in long-term effects and further research is needed.

U2 - 10.1024/1012-5302/a000952

DO - 10.1024/1012-5302/a000952

M3 - SCORING: Journal article

C2 - 37537993

VL - 37

SP - 19

EP - 26

JO - PFLEGE

JF - PFLEGE

SN - 1012-5302

IS - 1

ER -