Community Attitudes Towards Palliative Care – Summary Report — August 2006

3.5 Attitudes

Up to Publications

| TOC |next page

3.5.1 Community

Australians indicated that the community needed to know more about palliative care, and should have information about palliative care before it is needed.

"Until we have to face it, we don’t want to know. We think we are immortal. I think it would be a good thing if we did know more about it"

"Up until when my wife passed, I didn’t know what palliative care was. With hindsight, maybe I should have"

Australians held palliative care services in high regard, indicating that:

• Palliative care is about the emotional support as well as the medical side of care;
• With an ageing population, the need for palliative care is going to increase;
• It is a doctor’s obligation to inform patients with a life threatening illness about palliative care;
• Palliative care provides support and assistance to the patient, family and carer; and
• Palliative care helps people die with dignity.

Palliative care is generally not seen as being limited to those with a particular prognosis such as cancer or of a certain age.

"Kids with cancer ... they get the same type of care as older people, there isn’t any difference"

"It’s not just elderly, like my friend’s 15 year old and the mother while he was in hospital"

Figure 16: Community attitudes towards palliative care

Q14. Below are some general statements about palliative care. Please tell us if you agree or disagree with each statement.

Base: All respondents (n = 1,201)
Bars indicate the sum of 'somewhat agree' and 'strongly agree' responses

Results

Emotional support 95%
Ageing population 94%
Doctor's obligation to inform 93%
Community learn more 92%
Die with dignity 89%
Support and assistance 89%
Referred by Dr or hospital 66%
Allow the patient to choose 66%
Euthanasia 34%
PC is free 28%
Don't want to know anything 19%
Older people 17%
Cancer patients 4%

Australians were more divided in regard to some of the more specific details of palliative care processes, with divided attitudes about:

• Whether palliative care allows the patient to choose the care they need as they live the remainder of their life;
• You need to be referred by a doctor or a hospital to obtain palliative care; and
• The cost of palliative care.

"No, no charge, it comes through the base hospital, the palliative care nurses"

"You get it after 6 months, but you have to pay"

Australians reported particularly high levels of division and uncertainty regarding the distinction between euthanasia and palliative care.

"I don’t think the palliative care people know about euthanasia, it’s a foreign language to them"

“They are both in the same area ...”

Australians held very positive attitudes towards palliative care. However, many were unsure about the cost of palliative care, and the difference between palliative care and euthanasia. Top of page

3.5.2 Providers

A lack of agreement between providers and the community was seen for a number of aspects of palliative care.

• A very high proportion of providers indicated that the community sees palliative care as being only for cancer patients. However, a very small proportion of community members themselves perceived palliative care to be limited to cancer patients.
• Similarly, a very high proportion of providers indicated that the community sees palliative care as being only for older people whereas very few community members perceived palliative care to be limited to older people.
• Many providers indicated that people in the community only wanted information about palliative care when they required it, whereas very few in the community echoed this sentiment, indicating that they would like at least a basic level of knowledge before services were required.

Figure 17: Providers attitudes towards palliative care

Q17. Now, I will read out a list of statements about perceptions that the community might have about palliative care in your state. Could you tell me if you agree or disagree that the community:

Base: All respondents (n = 1,201)
The bars indicate the sum of 'somewhat agree' and 'strongly agree' responses

Results

Community
Need to know exists 92%
Oly cancer 4%
Only when needed 19%
Only older 17%
Euthanasia 34%

Providers
Need to know exists 95%
Oly cancer 94%
Only when needed 86%
Only older 65%
Euthanasia 29%

Providers' perceptions of community attitudes towards palliative care sometimes differed from those reported by the community themselves.

There were higher levels of agreement between providers and the community for the requirement of more information in the community, with both stakeholders indicating that the community needs to know more about palliative care.

Both providers and community were divided regarding the community’s understanding of the distinction between euthanasia and palliative care. Top of page

3.5.3 Clients

While clients considered that they did not have high levels of knowledge on first contact with palliative care (refer above), when prompted about specific aspects of palliative care following contact with the system, clients demonstrated high levels of understanding of palliative care (Figure 18).

Palliative care was understood as services provided to the patients as well as families and carers. Not only was palliative care seen as providing medical care, it was also seen to provide emotional support. High levels of agreement were reported for:

• Palliative care services are about the sick person/family/carers; and
• Palliative care is about emotional support as well as medical care.

Clients were more divided on the cost of palliative care, with moderate levels of agreement for the statement: palliative care does not cost the patient anything.

Figure 18: Client attitudes to palliative care

Q14. Below are some general statements about palliative care. Please tell us if you agree or disagree with each statement.

Base: All clients (n=52). The graph depicts the sum of ‘strongly agree’ and ‘agree’ responses

Results

Patient/carer/family 92%
Emotional support 90%
Satisfied with carer support 90%
Satisfied with patient services 90%
Community does not know enough 81%
No costs for patients 73%
Wish knew more about PC 62%

Clients indicated that they were satisfied with the palliative care services they received, and reported that the community should know more about palliative care.

Clients were satisfied with the care services they had received, with high levels of agreement for:

• I was satisfied with the services and support that were provided to the person I was caring for; and
• I was satisfied with services and support that I received while caring for the sick person.

Clients recognised a need for greater community awareness of palliative care, with high levels of agreement for the statement: the community does not know enough about palliative care. However, only moderate levels of agreement were reported for the statement: I wish I had known more about palliative care before it was needed.
Top of page

| TOC |next page