title: Paramedics' perceptions of their role in palliative care: analysis of focus group transcripts.
abstract: Paramedics play an important role in out-of-hospital health care. They provide unscheduled care, assisting both patients with minor injuries and those experiencing life-threatening emergencies. Increasingly, paramedics are called on to manage chronic and complex health needs, including symptom relief for patients at the end of life. However, paramedics may not be well prepared to offer palliative care, as practice guidelines and education tend to focus on the management of acute medical emergencies and major trauma. Emergency medical services that employ paramedics rarely have practice guidelines or protocols that deal specifically with palliative care.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Emergency Health and Paramedic Practice, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University, Frankston, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: Bill
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lord
authors.forename: Katrina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Récoché
authors.forename: Margaret
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: O'Connor
authors.forename: Patsy
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yates
authors.forename: Melinda
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Service
mesh_terms: D003220:Conflict, Psychological; D004632:Emergency Medical Services; D004634:Emergency Medical Technicians; D017144:Focus Groups; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D016365:Liability, Legal; D016134:Organizational Policy; D010166:Palliative Care; D024382:Professional Role; D011793:Queensland; D016414:Resuscitation Orders