The Role of Family Doctor in Providing General Palliative Care: International Experience

Abstract

According to the UN General Assembly (2010), out of 58 million people who die every year from various diseases, about 60% of people are incurably ill, and during the period of stay at the terminal stage of the disease, they need palliative care services. 85 patients who need palliative care at the end of life are in outpatient settings and at home.

The objective: to study the experience of Germany and Great Britain regarding the role of family doctors in providing general palliative care for the purpose of introducing best practices into the domestic health care system.

Materials and methods. The analytical method of scientific and research sources on the role of family doctors in the provision of general palliative care in Germany and the UK was studied.

Results. It has been established that the main providers of palliative care services in Germany and the UK are family doctors, therapists and nurses who interact with patients at the primary level. Today in Europe, palliative care services for patients at home are part of the family doctor’s work, and in this connection basic education in palliative care is compulsory. The European experience of the palliative care process can be beneficial for Ukraine in introducing palliative care services at the primary level of provision of medical care, in assessing the role of the family doctor in ensuring the quality of life of palliative patients and the need to obtain basic knowledge of palliative care by general practitioners.

Conclusion. Palliative care programs in European countries are most effective when they are present at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels of health care. Formation of financing of palliative care services on a mixed basis (combination of state and local budgets) ensures stability, timeliness and predictability of service delivery.