Recently, several people I know have been diagnosed with serious illnesses . Specifically, among friends and family, four people are battling cancer.  This situation has led me to pray, reflect, and ask doctors and nurses how I can alleviate the pain and suffering this disease causes them.

They all insist that  , in addition to medical attention, they need the closeness and affection of family and friends.  Sometimes, it’s enough for them to feel the physical proximity of loved ones, receive a caress, or be accompanied by someone who silently watches over their sleep or rest.

A doctor once told me that  “pain can only be faced, and defeated, if it is accepted, because if it is rejected or feared, it tends to grow.”  This statement is more relevant than ever in our 21st-century society, where  many people find no meaning in pain and suffering.

Every day, the number of people who are dependent, elderly, or suffering from advanced illnesses with no hope of recovery increases. For these cases, a nurse explained to me,  listening and providing support is the most appropriate option; that’s what palliative care is for—a very special way of caring for patients and their families.

Palliative care can eradicate or significantly reduce pain and complex symptoms in many cases through specialized treatments.  Palliative care arises to assist patients with professional attention and personalized care; to respond to their suffering—both the patient’s and their family’s—because  advanced illnesses are not only experienced by the patient; caregivers also suffer. They are “the other patients.”

The response to pain is not to deny it until it arrives, nor to fear it as something insurmountable.  Palliative care provides assistance from a personalized perspective, attending not only to patients’ physical symptoms, but also to their psychological, spiritual, and social needs, and supporting their families as well.  It is comprehensive care that preserves dignity, attending to the person in all their dimensions, and therein lies its particular effectiveness.

If we want a more humane society,  we need more humane care, especially for those who, due to their vulnerability, are in need of care and protection.  And because all life is always worthy of the best care, even if physical or psychological faculties are not at their peak or are permanently impaired.

This article was published in the  Diario de Almería

PS It is worth knowing about the Laguna Care Center Hospital  (operated by the  Vianorte-Laguna Foundation ), a health and care center located in  Madrid , specializing in the comprehensive care of frail elderly people and patients with advanced or complex chronic diseases. 

It stands out for offering multidisciplinary care focused on patient dignity, integrating  palliative care services , geriatric rehabilitation, cognitive stimulation, and emotional support for families. It is recognized as one of the leading centers in Europe in terms of the number of palliative care beds.