Hospice and Palliative Medicine

“What the heck is CMSS and why should I care?”

You may be asking yourself, “What the heck is CMSS and why should I care?” While I knew that this stands for Council of Medical Specialty Societies, I attended their recent annual meeting with less than a full appreciation of what this is and why it matters to us doing Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Afterwards, I have a much better understanding. Sitting through various presentations that included slides predicting not just political ‘fireworks’ in the coming year, but political ‘nuclear explosions.’

AAHPM’s First RFS Representative’s Perspective on AMA Interim Meeting

My name is Devon Fletcher. I’m a Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellow at the Virginia Commonwealth University Health Systems in Richmond, VA. I recently had the opportunity to attend the American Medical Association’s Interim Meeting in San Diego this November as the AMA’s first ever AAHPM representative to the Resident and Fellow Section (RFS). I’d … Read moreAAHPM’s First RFS Representative’s Perspective on AMA Interim Meeting

Concurrent Palliative Care-Peace of Mind in the Setting of an Uncertain Prognosis; Part 1

This post is Part 1 of a multi-part series. Concurrent Palliative Care – Peace of mind in the setting of an uncertain prognosis Jean S. Kutner, MD, MSPH   I was in Asheville, N.C. for a professional meeting when I received a call from a medicine resident at our hospital saying that she was transferring … Read moreConcurrent Palliative Care-Peace of Mind in the Setting of an Uncertain Prognosis; Part 1

Academy Voices Vital Role of Palliative and Hospice Care in Improving Quality of Health Care

Many health care initiatives launched by the Affordable Care Act focus on improving the quality of health care. The Academy and its members have been participating in these efforts, trying to bring wider visibility to the role that palliative care and hospice care can play in improving the quality of health care for patients with serious, advanced illness.

Every continent except Antarctica

I had the opportunity to represent AAHPM at the 18th International Congress of Palliative Care in Montreal in early October. This was my first time at this Congress and, with the help of AAHPM member and Congress attendee, Dr. Nancy Hutton, we talked with people practicing palliative care from every continent of the world except Antarctica at the opening reception.

Palliative Care Represented at Critical Care Conference

On September 27 and 28 the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) held a conference of stakeholders at their headquarters in Chicago, to discuss the problems patients face after a stay in intensive care. In addition to ICU physicians and nurses, physiatrists, psychiatrists, counselors, and representatives of patients and other groups (including palliative care) were … Read morePalliative Care Represented at Critical Care Conference

Palliative Care Grand Rounds 2.9

Welcome to the monthly edition of Palliative Care Grand Rounds the monthly review of the best of hospice and palliative care content from blogs. We started in February of 2009 and are almost done with our second full year. To see previous editions of Palliative Care Grand Rounds go the http://palliativecaregr.blogspot.com/. This summer has been … Read morePalliative Care Grand Rounds 2.9

Heads up!! Calling all measure geeks!! Save the date: NQF call for measures planned for November 2010

The National Quality Forum (NQF) is planning to issue a call for measures relevant to hospice and palliative care some time late in 2010, probably November. This is a critical opportunity to advance quality measurement for our field.