New evidence indicates the need to rethink anticipatory prescribing This Research Alert brings together new evidence on anticipatory prescribing, a widely used resource for healthcare professionals to help control distressing symptoms for people dying in the community. The evidence identifies important problems with current practice in the UK and suggests system-level changes to tackle four […]
Making a difference to palliative care: Dr Ben Bowers wins European Research Award
The European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) Early Researcher Award winner in 2023, Dr Ben Bowers, discusses his research, which aims to improve end-of-life care by developing the evidence base on anticipatory prescribing in the last days of life. Ben is a clinical-academic community nurse. He is a Wellcome Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Primary Care Unit, […]
Prescribing ‘just in case’ drugs for people who are dying at home remains based on limited evidence
The research evidence for the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of ‘anticipatory prescribing’ for people approaching the end of life at home or in care homes remains unclear, say researchers at the University of Cambridge, who have just studied the most recent research on the topic. In standard anticipatory prescribing, which is commonplace in the UK, […]
New approaches needed to help ease symptoms amongst people in the last days of life
Patients in the last days of life at home or in care homes sometimes need fast access to medications to ease their symptoms but new approaches are needed to ensure this happens, say Dr Ben Bowers and colleagues in the BMJ today. For patients dying in the community, rapid and tailored access to last-days-of-life medications […]
‘Just in Case’ medicines don’t always help people dying at home
New research reveals the complexities of making ‘Just in Case’ medications available for people nearing the end of life at home. Patients, informal carers and healthcare professionals interviewed for the research said their presence could cause distress as well as comfort. Some families reported difficulties persuading nurses to administer the medications to relieve suffering. The […]
Innovation and research in anticipatory prescribing: Study Day report
Anticipatory Prescribing in community End of Life Care by Dr Ben Bowers Recent innovations and research in end-of-life anticipatory prescribing practice were discussed at a national Study Day hosted by PELiCam on 21 September 2022. The national Cross-Applied Health Research Collaboration (ARC) event brought healthcare professionals and researchers together to share and discuss recent research […]