Acute Medicine | Palliative care | Recognising and managing fatigue

Recognising and managing fatigue
Session overview
Description
This session provides a framework for the integrated assessment and management of fatigue in end of life care patients.

This session was reviewed by Ollie Minton and Sarah Hanrott and last updated in November 2023.

Learning objectives
By the end of this session you will be able to:

• give a working definition of chronic fatigue associated with advanced illness
• describe the common pattern of symptoms associated with fatigue, recognising their variability and potential overlap with depressive symptoms
• outline the core steps involved in an assessment of fatigue, to reach a diagnosis and initiate a management plan - listing the key elements of a fatigue history
• recognise the main disease-related, treatment-related and psychological causes of fatigue
• list the range of interventions that can be offered to manage fatigue symptoms

Prerequisites
Before commencing this session you should complete:

• Assessment of mood (215-0432)

Everyone has experienced normal fatigue which improves with rest. Chronic fatigue associated with advancing disease or disease-related treatment, does not improve with rest and can have a serious impact on a patient's ability to function, and on their quality of life.

Symptoms of chronic fatigue are commonly experienced by patients who are nearing the end of their lives. Symptoms, some of which may be mood-related, vary from person to person and are often either unrecognised or minimised by professionals, who may regard fatigue as a 'normal' part of illness, for which nothing can be done.

This session covers the symptoms of fatigue and its main causes. It also looks at how fatigue can be assessed and the range of interventions that can be offered to manage fatigue symptoms in the context of end-of-life care.