Palliative Care for Terminally Ill Individuals with Schizophrenia

Individuals with schizophrenia are often medically undertreated and experience symptoms that interfere with communication and the capacity to make medical decisions. These issues complicate quality end-of-life care for this population and are of particular concern for hospice and palliative care nurses and health care providers. This article presents a case study of a terminally ill patient with schizophrenia. It is divided into a series of vignettes; each vignette presents a common clinical issue encountered by the palliative care team. Interventions suggested in the literature and those used by team members when working with the patient are discussed.