Dr. Doron Sagman addresses the Four Counties Long-Term Care Palliative Network Jan. 19.

Palliative-care network discusses pain and symptom management, music therapy
’I want people to know that there is a resource team here to help them,’ says network lead
Monday January 23, 2012 -- Deron Hamel
PETERBOROUGH, Ont. - The latest Four Counties Long-Term Care Palliative Network meeting held in Peterborough Jan. 19 saw about 100 sector stakeholders convene for a daylong information session on a myriad of issues, including addressing pain, symptom management and music therapy.

To complement the array of topics the network once again offered, members shared their knowledge and advice, and the session hosted an informative main speaker, Dr. Doron Sagman.

Sagman, a psychiatrist with Toronto East General Hospital and associate vice-president of neuroscience at Eli Lilly Canada Inc., presented evidence-based information on the antidepressant Cymbalta’s use as an effective pain-management medication.

In his presentation, Sagman went through a number of treatments for conditions such as fibromyalgia, lower back pain and neuropathic pain and discussed how the medication can be used to address these issues.

Also on the agenda was information about Cancer Care Ontario’s symptom management pocket guide, a resource covering best practices in addressing six symptoms commonly seen in people receiving palliative care — delirium, dyspnea, nausea, pain, depression and anxiety.

Patti Stanton, a palliative pain and symptom management consultant with Hospice Peterborough, led the segment.

Stanton says the guide has been helpful in her work in palliative care, and is encouraging caregivers to learn more about this valuable resource online.

Pat Haringa, the activity director at Caressant Care McLaughlin Road in Lindsay, attended the Activity Professionals on Ontario’s annual conference in October, and she shared with the network the benefits of music in long-term care and palliative care.

She cited a presentation from Room 217, an organization offering therapeutic music resources for people at the end-of-life stage, which centred on the capacity music has for eliciting a response and supporting healing and transcendence.

She encouraged attendees to visit the Room 217 website, and activity co-ordinators exchanged information about music therapists who’ve been helpful with programming and palliative care.

Stanton, a Four Counties network lead, says the No. 1 learning she hopes people come away with from the session is a collective understanding of why the network exists and how it can help caregivers.

“I want people to know that there is a resource team here to help them, that these tools are valid and reliable, and that it will change their practice if they use them,” she tells the Morning Report.

The Four Counties Long-Term Care Palliative Network holds five workshops annually to discuss best practices in palliative care in long-term care homes.

The network consists of representatives from long-term care homes in Peterborough, Haliburton and Northumberland counties and the City of Kawartha Lakes.

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— More to come

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