Abstract

Chile’s population is aging rapidly, which means a growing number of people is living with chronic illnesses that limit the way they live their life, a situation that requires the presence of palliative care teams. The inclusion of speech-language pathologists in palliative care is recent in most countries, even more so in ours. Consequently, there is a limited number of local guidelines to facilitate the participation of these professionals from a model centered on the care, well-being, and companionship for the person, their family, and/or significant others. Considering this, the objective of this narrative review is to delve into the foundations that support the inclusion of speech-language pathologists in palliative care teams. For this purpose, the scope of practice, roles, and responsibilities of Speech-Language Pathology are described. The information available in this regard shows two major fields of action linked to communication and swallowing, both of which must be addressed in order to promote the participation and autonomy of the person when making decisions about their care, as well as respect for their advance directives, when necessary. Under this paradigm, findings are clear in stating that the speech-language pathologist should move away from the traditional rehabilitation model, and migrate towards a group of actions that allow them to address-in the best possible way-conditions that generate suffering, pain, or discomfort to the person. This review addresses said actions with sufficient detail to allow proposing six major challenges for professionals who work (or want to work) in the area.