Palliative care case conference (PCCC) in residential aged care (RAC): views of general practitioners

Aim To examine the views of General Practitioners (GPs) on providing a palliative approach in residential aged cared in particular their experiences with the palliative care case conference. Background The national Comprehensive Evidence-­‐Based Palliative Approach in Residential Aged-­‐Care (CEBPARAC) project, funded by the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, sought to implement and evaluate an evidence-­‐based palliative approach in residential aged-­‐care. Methods A purposive sample of eleven GPs across Western Australia (2), South Australia (6) and Queensland (3) participated in face-­‐to face, semi-­‐structured interviews. Qualitative content analysis was used to generate the core categories. Findings The overall evaluation by the General Practitioners (GPs) of the palliative care case conference (PCCC) in residential aged care (RAC) is understood through three core themes: people, performance and place. The GPs identified elements important for policy makers and health administrators seeking ways to translate into practice the PCCC in RAC. GPs identify what best serves to make the PCCC work well and also provided insights into what the PCCC actually looks like in aged care.