| [ Summary ] |
The author has been practicing medicine for 25 years as a surgeon, 9 years as a palliative care doctor, and 7 years as a visiting care doctor advocating home palliative care. During this period, the author has met a number of cancer patients and also observed several patients experiencing a sense of loss related to being forced to leave from people they share a close relationship with, a loss of independence, and the anxiety associated with having limited time left in this world. However, what the author noted as a visiting care doctor was that a large number of patients do not strongly/clearly express their sense of loss or even try to willingly accept death. It may be due to the technical progress achieved in the field of palliative care, but there is a general perception that patients requesting home care are often elderly persons or patients with advanced stage disease compared to in-patients. |