The Bond: S.E. Palliative Center
Abstract
Population aging is one of the most important social trends in the 21st century. In 1999, the world's population reached 6 billion, about 590 million are over 65 years of age. By 2020 to 2030, almost 14% of the population will be elderly people, of whom older people over 80 will be a very fast growing group. (Census IDB, 2017) The rapidly growing age of the population will undoubtedly change the demand for goods and services such as housing, transportation, and social security. Family structure and intergenerational relations will also be greatly affected. In this context, how to efficiently help the elderly to go through the final stages of their lives is an issue that humankind has always tried to better. In 1974, the first palliative care center in the United States was established. Subsequently, the industry developed rapidly and the number of palliative programs increased at a rate of nearly 17% each year. Today, the National Hospice Organization of the United States (NHO) is running and planning more than 3100 hospice programs in 50 states. Palliative care is targeted at those who are dying, that is, patients who are usually diagnosed for only 6 months or less. (According to statistics, even if the data continues growing in recent years, the time that patients spent in palliative care center is still much shorter than six months.) Palliative care based on the principle of "good death" is a concert that is being promoted in recent years. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines palliative care as helping patients and their families face problems caused by life-threatening diseases and assessing pain, psychological, social and spiritual problems early to improve the quality of life. According to regulations, palliative care centers do not provide treatment to patients. The purpose of palliative care centers is neither to cure illness or prolong life, nor to accelerate death. In fact, the quality of personal life is improved by providing palliative care, pain control, and symptom management. All in all, the dignity of the patients is the concern for palliative care. Palliative care emphasizes the emotional, psychological, social, economic, and spiritual needs of patients and their families.