Soon over 2,400 people will be arriving in New Orleans for the AAHPM & HPNA Annual Assembly. While the attendees will be traveling to The Big Easy for the inspiring and captivating education sessions it would be hard to deny that many attendees are excited to get to explore the amazing city and all that … Read moreNew Orleans- Here we come
Drug shortages present more than a few challenges to the EOL community. Many constituencies, patients, clinicians, and the organizations that provide care, are affected. Challenges include consistent symptom management (very problematic when cascading supply shortages compel, what seems to be, continuous drug rotation), potential patient distress (you’re changing my pain medication AGAIN!), comfortable prescribing (what’s … Read moreDrug Shortages
On November 29, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) hosted a first-ever Quality Measures Summit to identify a set of cross-cutting quality measures applicable to all patients with cancer, irrespective of diagnosis or place along the disease trajectory. This meeting was in conjunction with the inaugural ASCO Quality Symposium, an educational and scientific meeting … Read moreQuality Matters: A View from the Seat at the Table
“You have a lot to learn,” he said sternly as the heat in his voice rose and his finger stood tremulously in front of my nose. “How old are you? I demand to know.” This is what my home visit to an 82 year old hospice patient devolved to as I told him that he … Read moreToo Few Gray Hairs?
Thanks to the generosity of the AAHPM’s “Research Scholars Program,” I had the opportunity to attend last week’s annual Kathleen M. Foley Research Retreat of the National Palliative Care Research Center (NPCRC, www.npcrc.org). Each year this retreat brings together nearly one-hundred senior researchers, junior faculty, and trainees alike, in an environment built to encourage mentoring, … Read moreNPCRC Foley Research Retreat Reflections
By Angela Hult, Cambia Health Foundation “If we want to transform something as huge as health care, we have to think big. We need to change the way the people we love are dying.” –Ellen Goodman That’s what Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Ellen Goodman told the crowd at last week’s Cambia Health Foundation Sojourns Awards luncheon … Read moreCambia Health Foundation honors palliative care pioneers
In a recent blog post I wrote about the Mayo Transform conference awarding The Personal Caring Initiative with an iSpot award to showcase our work in providing personalized care to seriously ill people and their loved ones. This initiative includes the development of a palliative care service line, however we have taken several deliberate steps … Read moreThe Personal Caring Initiative: A Transformative Approach to Palliative Care in a Regional Medical Center
As the field of Hospice and Palliative Medicine grows up and integrates into mainstream medicine, we find ourselves increasingly focused on building the evidence base for our practice and developing quality measures that will drive the best outcomes. That’s a noble endeavor, but as we struggle with the science, we run the risk of losing … Read moreQuality Measures─ Where’s the Compassion?
In 2011, our burgeoning palliative care team had the unique experience to spend a week learning from the palliative care teams of McGill University. During that week we learned about the Whole Person Care Program and subsequently invited the Director of Whole Person Care, Dr. Tom Hutchinson to Mayo Clinic to lead a workshop on … Read moreLessons from Palliative Care informed the Creation of Whole Person Care at McGill
Formal training in self-care is relatively uncommon in most medical disciplines. Hospice and Palliative Medicine (HPM) specialty may be the exception. Grief if left unnamed can be a source of great pain, and as with any wound, if ignored, runs the risk of festering only to cause even greater discomfort and distress. Granek et al … Read moreDiscovering Relief in Our Own Grief