title: Delivery of safe and effective care out of hours: the impact of the shared clinical record on a patient's out-of-hours contact with specialist palliative care.
abstract: Access to adequate clinical information is essential for out-of-hours palliative care teams and general practitioners, specific examples to illustrate and justify this need are surprisingly rare in the medical literature. Without access to the full clinical background the patient in this lesson may have been inappropriately admitted to a palliative care unit and delayed investigations would have misguided the admitting doctor's assessment, planned investigations and management.
authors.affiliation: Palliative Care Department, Prince Charles Hospital, Merthyr Tydfil. dgharris@doctors.org.uk
authors.forename: D G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.forename: R E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Owen
authors.forename: I G
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Finlay
mesh_terms: D039602:After-Hours Care / Q000379:methods*; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D033181:Information Dissemination / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000379:methods*; D010348:Patient Care Team; D011996:Records; D019452:Terminally Ill