Patients

This publication sets out a vision for giving people approaching the end of life more choice about where they would like to live and die.

Objective: The objective of this study is to test the validity of an accreditation programme for memory services in the UK by investigating whether different levels of accreditation status (excellent compared with accredited) are reflected in patients' and carers' reported satisfaction. Method: A comparison of survey data from patient and carer feedback questionnaires collected from services as part of the accreditation process. Results: Five hundred and eighty-three patient questionnaires and 663 carer questionnaires were returned from 41 services.

Informal carers in cancer and palliative care are known to have high needs and psychological morbidity, yet a literature review identified few targeted interventions. This systematic review of interventions for carers of patients using home cancer and palliative care services searched Medline, CancerLit, PsycInfo and Cinahl databases. The terms used were carer(s), caregiver(s), palliative and cancer. Papers that reported interventions for adults actively providing informal care for noninstitutionalized cancer and palliative care patients were reviewed.

Macmillan Cancer Support’s Worried Sick report presents a summary of the findings of a major quantitative survey conducted by Opinion Leader Research (OLR). The survey explores the impact of a cancer diagnosis on the lives of both people with cancer (who have received the diagnosis) and people affected by cancer (family members and friends who often help them cope with their cancer experience).

Objectives: Increasing attention has been paid to the needs of family members caring for a person with dementia but little has been written about the impact on the wider family. This paper was intended to see whether the need for information would stretch to those relatives living far from the patient.

This guide considers the potential of assistive technology to contribute to the care of people with dementia in the community. It has been written by members of the ASTRID project, involving the UK, Norway, the Netherlands and Ireland. It contains an introduction to the project, an account of technology in action, discussion of how to incorporate technology in a needs assessment, how to obtain and use assistive technology, and a review of ethical issues.

Nurse-led case management programmes have become increasingly popular over the last 15 years. Countries such as the USA, Canada, Sweden and the Netherlands have long running case management programmes in place for frail elderly people. The Department of Health in England has recently introduced a 'community matron' role to provide case management to patients with highly complex long-term conditions; a group that is predominantly comprised of elderly people.

Background and Purpose— Early supported discharge (ESD) for stroke has been shown to yield outcomes similar to or better than those of conventional care, but there is less information on the impact on costs and on the caregiver. The purpose of this study is to estimate the costs associated with an ESD program compared with those of usual care.

Methods— We conducted a randomized controlled trial of stroke patients who required rehabilitation services and who had a caregiver at home.