Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Advanced Psychological Care
Other languages of instruction: Catalan, English
Teaching staff
Students will be seen after class and/or by making an appointment.
Introduction
This course presents the basic fundamentals of psychological care in the field of palliative care. The aim is for the student to acquire knowledge, skills and therapeutic resources that will enable him/her to assess and address the psychological and spiritual needs of patients with advanced illness.
Pre-course requirements
Not applicable.
Objectives
a) Deepen in effective interventions for the psychological care of patients in an advanced situation and their families referred to palliative care teams.
b) Learn to proactively assess the psychological needs of patients, integrating them into the team's therapeutic plan in an appropriate manner.
c) Facilitate the acquisition of basic therapeutic skills for end-of-life accompaniment.
d) Apply therapeutic strategies in simulated cases from real clinical practice.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- CN01 - Acquire advanced and specific knowledge in symptom control (physical and emotional) and in communication and patient and family care.
- CN05 - Acquire knowledge in the management of complex end-of-life situations including the wish to bring forward death and considering all dimensions of the patient
- CN07 - Identify advanced techniques of assessment and management of physical, psychological (including spiritual) and social needs with a multicultural vision.
- CP02 - Apply the principles of intellectual honesty and scientific integrity in the professional field of PCs.
- CP09 - pply solutions to problems that may arise when carrying out tasks in the field of PCs.
- HB03 - Integrate multidimensional care to the problems of patients in advanced illness.
- HB04 - Analyse complex problems in the care area with a multidimensional vision in order to solve them in a tactical and strategic manner.
Learning outcomes of the subject
At the end of the course, students will be able to:
1. Demonstrate knowledge-based skills to manage psychological distress including demoralization syndrome, anxiety and depression to enable appropriate patient management.
2. Evaluate the support of the patient's psychological and spiritual needs with a multicultural vision.
3. Incorporate techniques and skills to meet the support needs of the interdisciplinary team.
Syllabus
1. Models of coping with the disease
2. Psychological assessment
3. Essential needs and spirituality
4. Geriatric patient and specific needs
5. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and specific needs
6. Oncologic patient and specific needs
7. Humanistic therapies (dignity therapy, compassion therapy, meaning of life therapy, forgiveness)
8. Other therapies: Virtual reality, mindfulness, etc.
9. Art therapy
Bibliography and resources
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Rodríguez, J. A. C. (2013). Manual de psicooncología: tratamientos psicológicos en pacientes con cáncer. Piramide Ediciones Sa.
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Breitbart, W. S. (Ed.). (2016). Meaning-centered psychotherapy in the cancer setting: Finding meaning and hope in the face of suffering. Oxford University Press.