The Current Status of Palliative Care in Turkey: A Nurse's Perspective

Abstract

There has been a growing awareness for the need to develop a palliative care service in Turkey. But a significant proportion of the Turkey population still does not have access to palliative care. The majority of cancer patients are treated in university hospitals that have support units with pain specialists and medical oncologists. Some significant barriers to the development of palliative care nursing were identified: 1) Lack of palliative care education and training programs 2) Lack of certification for Palliative Care Nursing 3) There is very limited research about palliative care nursing 4) lack of public awareness and 4) shortage of nursing staff 5) the limited availability of/knowledge about opioid analgesics. Nurses have a unique and primary responsibility for advocating for the right of patients to maintain their quality of life for as long as possible and to experience a dignified and peaceful death. Continued efforts are needed to overcome these barriers to successful implementation of palliative and end of- life care for patients with cancer.