On Monday 5 November, the Sant Cugat Campus hosted the fifth Interdisciplinary Approach to the Elderly Seminar, a conference organised and led by fourth-year Nursing students. This year, the students sought to demonstrate the importance of caring for terminally ill patients and their loved ones.
Dr Cristina Monforte, director of the Department of Nursing, was the person charged with opening the event and welcoming the attendees. Her remarks gave way to the round table “Communicating with patients at the end of life”. Moderated by Héctor Ruiz, la discussion featured Dr Monforte and Dr Iris Crespo, psychologist and lecturer at UIC Barcelona, both of who are researchers in the WeCare Chair; Dr Pilar Loncan, a doctor and member of the care team in the PADES Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine Unit at the Santa Susanna Social Healthcare Foundation; and María Teresa Blázquez, the family member of a patient who received palliative care.
The second part of the event consisted of two oral presentation tables, moderated by Sara Fuente and Patricia Martín, in which the students discussed their research projects. Some of the main findings included the importance of teaching Nursing students, health professionals and family members how to adequately communicate with people at the end of life and the need for specific training in complex situations such as delirium and dementia.
After the presentations, Dr Mariona Guerrero and Dr Andrea Rodríguez led a workshop focused on communicating with patients, family members and the care team in the final stage of life. The workshop included a screening of one of the videos from the WeCare Festival, entitled “The Transformation Process for Palliative Care Professionals: The Metamorphosis”.
Before concluding, Isabel Fuster, chairperson of the Scientific Committee, read aloud the conclusions and awarded the prizes for best presentations. This year’s first-place award, which included a grant from the publishing house Panamericana, went to Delia Mora, Isabel Fuster and Patricia Martín for the paper “Communication before terminal sedation at the end of life”. The second-place prize, which included a grant from the Hestia Chair, was awarded to Jorge Puyuelo, Alba Franco, Sara Fuente and Anna Escriu for the paper “Experiences of family members of terminal patients with delirium”.
Finally, nurse Teresa Cerezo, a prominent figure in the management of care during the grieving process at the Hospital Universitari General de Catalunya, and Sergi Maycas, president of the Organising Committee, were charged with bringing the fifth edition of the Interdisciplinary Approach to the Elderly Seminar to a close.
