It includes expert assessment and specialist pain and symptom management. Interdisciplinary care addresses the person’s physical, psychological, spiritual and cultural needs.

Myths and Facts:

Myth: Pain is an inevitable part of dying

Fact: Pain can be managed through a number of ways. Pain management is a vital part of palliative care to make sure the patient is not suffering. Pain is mainly managed by medicines including morphine. Pain is also managed by helping patients live with their pain.

Myth: Dying is similar to the movies, where people take a last breath surrounded by family and friends.

Fact: This may be the situation for some people, but like television representations of births, life is more complex and varied. Dying is different for everyone depending on age, gender, illness and mobility.

Myth: People in palliative care who stop eating die of starvation.

Fact: As people deteriorate from advanced illnesses, it is common for hunger and thirst to decline as the body recognises itself that it is coming to end of its’ life. People who stop eating die of their illness not starvation. Keeping the mouth moist and comfortable is very important.

Myth: Palliative care hastens death, it is the beginning of the end

Fact: Palliative care ensures you have the best quality of life until your death. Palliative care provides physical, emotional, social and spiritual support for you and your family.  

Myth: Palliative care is only available when you’re in your last few days of dying.

Fact: Palliative care is available for people once they are diagnosed with an advanced illness that will cause their death which could be many years away. Palliative care provides specialised care to manage pain and other symptoms, as well as addressing the needs of the person and their family so that they can live, die and grieve well.

Myth: You can only receive palliative care in a hospital.

Fact: Palliative care is provided in many places including hospital, hospice, aged care facilities and in the home.

Myth: Palliative care means my doctor has given up and there is no hope for me.

Fact: Palliative care ensures the best quality of life for those who have been diagnosed with an advanced illness.

Myth: Palliative care is just for people with cancer

Fact: Care can be accessed by anyone suffering with a life limiting illness, including chronic diseases such as kidney, liver, lung and heart failure, dementia and other neurological illnesses as well as certain conditions among children.

Myth: Euthanasia and assisted suicide are part of palliative care. Making them legal only offers more choice to patients

Fact: Euthanasia and assisted suicide is not a substitute for palliative care. Palliative care strives to help a patient and their family physically, emotionally, spiritually and mentally to die well, naturally.

Myth: Morphine is addictive

Fact: When given to relieve pain, morphine (or any other opioid) is not addictive.

Myth: Tolerance to morphine will develop and higher doses will be needed

Fact: Tolerance does not develop, disease progression may cause increasing pain, and therefore increased need for pain relief.

Myth: Once on morphine the end is near

Fact: Many patients can use morphine for many months to control pain and breathlessness. Morphine does not cause death, the underlying illness causes death.

Myth: Codeine is a better drug than Morphine