"Consultation-Liaison Case Conference: Suicidal Ideation in a Patient at the End-of-Life".
Review
Overview
abstract
Psychiatric comorbidities are common among patients approaching end-of-life, often necessitating involvement of consultation-liaison psychiatrists. We present the case of a patient with advanced metastatic prostate cancer with a complicated hospital course who made suicidal remarks and requested a hastened death. This common and challenging clinical scenario requires a multidisciplinary approach. In this article, experts in consultation psychiatry, palliative care and psychoncology describe helpful diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for cases such as these. The key learning points are the differential diagnoses in EOL patients endorsing suicidal ideation, the psychiatric management of oncological and palliative care patients, the implementation of a safe discharge plan, and the role of the consultation-liaison psychiatrist in hospice care.
