Resolving conflicts, spending time with family and friends and saying good-bye to loved ones were also important. Doctors often don't have the office time to adequately address such needs, noted Pienta. The best thing a physician can do is convince the patient that hospice supportive services should be called into play, he said. Most practitioners don't have skills in assessing spiritual distress, agreed Portenoy. However, palliative specialists are more attuned to spiritual needs and will build this into their assessment of the patient.
Chaplains are usually on hand to help people deal with spirituality during the dying process.
Contributing to others The researchers also found that letting patients contribute to the well-being of others added to their quality of life. Contributing to others can involve patients giving a meaningful gift to someone or sharing their time, memories and knowledge. At the end of life patients often reflect on their successes and failures and discover that personal relationships are more important than professional achievements and monetary gains, stated the authors. They are anxious to share this knowledge with others. Contributing to others may also be applied to the academic setting, noted Portenoy.