The place and importance of palliative care in the fight against COVID-19

Abstract

Background: In a pandemic, existing palliative care units may be inadequate and palliative care may need to be provided in other hospital units. Aims: To review and improve the palliative care approach applied during a pandemic. Methods: Studies published between 2019 and 2020 were examined using the keywords fighting against COVID-19 and organisation in the PubMed, Ebsco, ScienceDirect and Web of Science databases. Findings: It was determined that the US Mass Critical Care Task Force created a framework for organising palliative care in the fight against the pandemic. It was determined that institutions and organisations implemented practices aligned with this framework during the pandemic. However, due to the evaluation, this framework was limited, and its scope should be expanded. Conclusions: The recommendations in this review and indicated in italics will improve the palliative care approach to be applied during the pandemic.