Palliative Care

If your patient has a life-limiting terminal illness, explain what the disease progression will look like.

Review Advanced Directives and Life Sustaining Treatment Choices with your patients on an annual basis, at minimum.

Patients with an advanced illness should review their wishes with you on a more frequent basis.

Ask what they would do if they were no longer to make care choices for themselves. Then ask them to put it in writing.

Explain to your patient that you are not going to abandon them. Explain that you will provide the best care you can, and that may at some point will likely include Hospice.

Ask what’s important

Ask you patient what’s most important to them before recommending the next form of treatment.

Explain all treatment options, benefits, burdens, and outcomes.

It’s likely when presented with choice, a patient and family will tell you what they value most.

Never say “Nothing more can be done”. Instead, present the family with hospice as the next step in care.

Explain Hospice provides much greater care, but with a focus on comfort, and is delivered in a setting where the patient wants to be and surrounded by the ones the love.