Dr. Mary Kae Eckert and Amy Tremblay, BSN, RN, CHPN, from the palliative care team at Concord Hospital discuss how palliative care is used to support and serve patients and their families. “Palliative care involves an interdisciplinary team approach to care. Collectively, we have different specialties and roles that enable us to support our patients and their families.”

What is palliative care?

Palliative care is a specialty of medicine that focuses on people with serious, life limiting illness. It focuses on providing relief from symptoms and stress associated with the illness. Palliative care is broken down into two categories: symptom management and goals of care.

There are a lot of physical symptoms that people get, such as pain, nausea, delirium, fatigue, depression, etc. For some patients, the pain will not go away, thereby posing special challenges which is where a more holistic approach to care comes into play.

Goals of care involve getting to know a patient. This is important in the event of a potentially life-threatening or risky treatment, such as a new chemotherapy regimen or a high-risk surgery. A palliative care specialist will take all the information from a discussion with a patient to learn more about their view of an ideal quality of life. This will help determine the proper course of treatment for a patient’s illness.

Who can benefit from palliative care?

A majority of hospitalized patients can benefit from palliative care services during their stay. In addition, anyone with a serious, life limiting illness who is at a heightened risk for a hospitalization can benefit from palliative care.

Why is it important for a patient to have an early consultation with a palliative care specialist?

Palliative care is a resource for anyone living with a serious, life-limiting illness, such as heart failure, cancer, dementia, etc. Therefore, palliative care can be helpful at any stage of illness and is best provided soon after a person learns of their diagnosis. Palliative care can also assist patients with understanding their choices for medical treatment.

How can palliative care help someone with an illness?

Palliative care addresses population needs through an interdisciplinary team approach focusing on patient-centered outcomes. Emphasis is placed on quality of life, reducing symptom burden, improving emotional well-being, as well as addressing caregiver needs. Additionally, communication and continuity of care provided with palliative care helps serve patients across the long-term nature of their serious, life limiting illness.

What impact does palliative care have on a patient’s care?

Palliative care improves a patient’s quality of life using a holistic approach to care. It can also support providers and staff with caring for complex patients both in and out of a hospital setting. Other benefits include reduced length of hospital stay through early identification of care goals; decrease unnecessary tests and medical procedures; prevent readmissions and reduce emergency medicine utilization by avoiding symptom crisis; reduce costs related to utilization of acute-care hospital services; reduce centers for Medicare and Medicaid services penalties; and improve a patient’s overall health care experience.

Dr. Mary Kae Eckert and Amy Tremblay, BSN, RN, CHPN, recently spoke about palliative care and its role with assisting patients and their families during a medical crisis at a “What’s Up Doc?” presentation hosted by Concord Hospital Trust’s Donor Lecture Series. The monthly series, supported by the Walker Lecture Fund, features members of Concord Hospital’s medical staff speaking to Concord Hospital Trust donors about new and innovative medical treatments and services. You can watch this latest presentation on Concord Hospital’s YouTube channel, youtube.com/concordhospital.