Home-based palliative care for cancer patients: Evaluating a decade of nursing-led interventions

Home-based palliative care for cancer patients: Evaluating a decade of nursing-led interventions
American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine; by Júnia de Oliveira Alves, Eduardo Bruera, Mônica Isaura Corrêa, Sonia Souza, Marília Ávila de Freitas Aguiar, Ana Paula Drummond-Lage; 6/25
Home-based palliative care is an effective approach for managing advanced-stage cancer patients, particularly in regions with limited healthcare infrastructure. In Brazil, the “Better at Home” Program enables interdisciplinary teams to deliver palliative care in patients’ homes, with nurses playing a central role in providing clinical and supportive interventions. Registered nurses (RNs) were responsible for complex procedures, supervision of nursing technicians (NTs), and caregiver training, while NTs performed routine clinical tasks and assisted with daily care. Notably, 99.4% of patients died at home, suggesting alignment with palliative goals of care. These findings underscore the central role of RNs in coordinating and delivering home-based palliative oncology care within a multidisciplinary framework.