“A recent report from a Global Palliative Care network rates India as one of the worst places to die,” says Dr. R. Rajith, Palliative Care Physician, GKNM Hospital. “Palliative Care is a human right and it should be readily available to all who need it. Unfortunately due to lack of awareness among the public and healthcare professionals, poor healthcare policies and poverty are the main barriers. Another reason is lack of training and there aren’t enough specialists. By specialists I mean doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, counsellors and other healthcare professionals. Most of the palliative care treatment centres are available only in major cities and people in remote towns and villages hardly have any access to such care.”
October 8 is World Hospice and Palliative Care Day and this year the theme is Living and Dying in Pain: It doesn’t have to happen.
Explaining what palliative care involves, Dr. Rajith says that it is a holistic approach which addresses not just the physical symptoms, but also a lot more. “Any treatment given to improve the quality of life of a patient facing life-limiting medical problems like cancer, stroke, heart failure, renal failure, Parkinson’s disease, etc. is palliative care. Palliative care physicians complement care provided by specialists such as oncologists, cardiologists, nephrologists, geriatricians or even an intensive care specialist. We address symptoms like pain, treatment complications and also attend to their psychological and spiritual issues, which the specialist may not find time for. We offer treatments for pain control, alternate therapies like relaxation therapy, counselling support for patients and their family. The end result is excellent patient care. I would like to think that we add a human touch to every day medical care.”
One of his patients is 68-year-old Ruby. Her husband, Ponnaiyan who is in his seventies, brought her to the hospice as he did not have the wherewithal at home to look after her the way she needed to be. “My wife is in better hands here. A doctor visits everyday and the nurses are gentle and caring.” Ponnayin is just one of the many caregivers of patients who have found succour at a palliative care centre. He has been assured that, even if he should take his wife back home, a nurse from the centre will visit regularly and help with her care.
According to Dr. Rajith, “When patients and their families face such life-threatening problems, they not only have to cope with physical symptoms like pain but also psychological, spiritual and social hurdles, which are usually overlooked. Palliative care is trying to reinvent a patient-centred empathetic medical care, which has been lost somewhere in our healthcare system.”
It was unimaginable pain that made Hemalatha bring her mother, Rajamani, to Dr. Rajith. She is admitted at the hospice and Hemalatha says it has eased the burden tremendously. Rajamani has breast Cancer and was unable to handle the pain at home. “It was becoming almost impossible to see her suffering so much,” says Hemalatha. “My mother couldn’t sleep, wouldn’t eat...In the last fortnight, since she has been here, she is much more at peace. She sleeps much better and has even regained a little of her appetite. The care, the assurance of the medical staff and the ambience seems to have acted like a balm.” she As Dr. Rajith puts it, bringing this relief to patients and caregivers makes his job worth it. He cites the example of a young patient he tended to recently. “Thirteen-year-old Ramakrishnan was brought to our casualty with advanced blood cancer and in a very poor general condition. He was drowsy, dehydrated and in excruciating pain in his lower limbs due to nerve damage in the spine. There were no further curative options left. His parents were advised to take the boy home with no support or access to adequate pain killers. They understood the advanced nature of the disease but wished for a dignified, pain-free death for their son. Ramakrishnan was admitted to our Raksha Hospice and, in a matter of few days, his general condition improved so much that we were able to get him back home within two weeks. He was still not able to walk but he went home pain-free and was able to eat and drink. We plan to see him in another few weeks.”
There are millions of people like Ramakrishnan out there who are suffering in pain with no proper access to such palliative care. Dr. Rajith rues that somewhere down the line we have forgotten that care has to continue beyond cure.
The aims of the World Hospice and Palliative Care Day are to increase the availability of hospice and palliative care is by creating opportunities to speak out about the issues; to raise awareness and understanding the medical, social, practical, spiritual needs of people living with a life limiting illness. For more details, contact Raksha Hospice: 04224351297
