Symptoms and functional status of palliative care patients in Iceland

Palliative care patients experience many debilitating symptoms and functional loss, but few longitudinal studies on the subject are available.

To assess the symptoms and functional status of patients admitted to specialised palliative care, to investigate whether changes occur over the admission period, and to establish whether symptoms and physical and cognitive function differ, based on the service setting. In addition, to participate in the development of the interRAI Palliative Care instrument (interRAI PC).

A prospective longitudinal study (N=123) was conducted at three time points: at admission to specialised palliative care, 14 days post-admission, and at discharge or death. The interRAI PC version 8 was used for data collection. Descriptive statistics were used, together with the Friedman statistical test and Wilcoxon post-hoc test.

Patients experienced a wide spectrum of symptoms; the most frequent were fatigue, loss of appetite, pain, difficulty sleeping, insufficient nutritional intake and nausea. Some symptoms stayed relatively stable over time, but others increased, while physical and cognitive function decreased over time. The interRAI PC version 8 proved comprehensive and simple to use.

Patients experienced a significant symptom burden and functional loss from admission to discharge or death. Symptoms indicating progressive deterioration became more frequent and severe, while physical and cognitive function decreased at all levels. Overall, inpatients had more symptoms and functional decline than home-care patients. The interRAI PC version 8 proved valuable in collecting clinical information and detecting changes over time as other interRAI suite instruments.