Full Description
First place winner, 2024 American Journal of Nursing Book of the Year Award in Palliative Care and Hospice
Hospice and palliative care professionals are experts at caring for individuals and families experiencing serious or life-limiting illnesses. Not everyone feels safe seeking out their expertise, however: LGBTQIA+ people may be deterred from seeking support because of barriers—both overt and subtle—that hospice and palliative care programs and professionals erect through their policies and practices. This book is an accessible, expert guide to incorporating LGBTQIA-inclusive practices into end-of-life care. It equips both new and experienced hospice and palliative care professionals with the knowledge they need to ensure that all people receive high-quality care.
Kimberly D. Acquaviva surveys fundamental concepts and the latest clinical developments, integrating relatable anecdotes and poignant personal reflections. She discusses her own experience caring for her wife, Kathy, who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2019. Unable to find a local hospice with an LGBTQIA-inclusive nondiscrimination statement, let alone one whose staff had been trained to provide nondiscriminatory care to LGBTQIA+ people, Kathy died at home six months later without hospice care.
Acquaviva offers clear, actionable strategies for palliative care and hospice physicians, physician associates, advanced-practice registered nurses, registered nurses, social workers, counselors, chaplains, and others. She also emphasizes how incorporating LGBTQIA-inclusive practices can transform work with every person receiving care. Anchored in the evidence and written in plain language, this book is the definitive guide for hospice and palliative care professionals seeking to deliver exceptional care to all the patients and families they serve.
Contents
About Language in This Book
Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction: From "Special Population" to Inclusion—A Paradigm Shift
1. Self-Awareness and Communication
2. Sex, Gender, Sexual Orientation, Behavior, and Health
3. Understanding Attitudes and Access to Care
4. The History and Physical Examination
5. Shared Decision Making and Family Dynamics
6. Care Planning and Coordination
7. Ethical and Legal Issues
8. Patient and Family Education and Advocacy
9. Psychosocial and Spiritual Issues
10. Ensuring Institutional Inclusiveness
11. Advocating for Change Beyond the Institution
Glossary
Supplemental Reading List
About the Content Expert Reviewers
References
Index
