Palliative Care
Palliative Care
The Palliative Care Program at Wishard Health Services offers a month-long elective in palliative care. Residents will see patients in consultation at Wishard Hospital with a multi-disciplinary team led by Dr. Greg Gramelspacher and a palliative care or geriatric medicine fellow. Residents will also consult on palliative care patients at Lockefield Village or other extended care facilities and make home visits to terminally ill patients in the community. The residents will participate in weekly palliative care team meetings, attend one or more VNS Hospice interdisciplinary team meetings (IDT), and spend individual time with each team member (i.e. attending physician, palliative care fellow, nurse, social worker, and chaplain). Residents will also have the opportunity to see patients at the Abbie Hunt Bryce Home (for the Dying Poor) which opened in June 2004. In addition, residents may elect to spend a day or more on the Ruth Lilly Yellow Rose Unit at Methodist Hospital or at St. Vincent's Hospice. Residents will be expected to see new consults and make daily rounds on active patients at Wishard Hospital (Monday through Friday). At the end of the month, residents will give a short presentation on a palliative care topic. Residents will also be expected to attend relevant morning reports, grand rounds and noon conferences. Typically, there will be no evening or week-end call (except for the usual jeopardy call).
The Palliative Care Program at Wishard Health Services offers a month-long elective in palliative care. Residents will see patients in consultation at Wishard Hospital with a multi-disciplinary team led by Dr. Greg Gramelspacher and a palliative care or geriatric medicine fellow. Residents will also consult on palliative care patients at Lockefield Village or other extended care facilities and make home visits to terminally ill patients in the community. The residents will participate in weekly palliative care team meetings, attend one or more VNS Hospice interdisciplinary team meetings (IDT), and spend individual time with each team member (i.e. attending physician, palliative care fellow, nurse, social worker, and chaplain). Residents will also have the opportunity to see patients at the Abbie Hunt Bryce Home (for the Dying Poor) which opened in June 2004. In addition, residents may elect to spend a day or more on the Ruth Lilly Yellow Rose Unit at Methodist Hospital or at St. Vincent's Hospice. Residents will be expected to see new consults and make daily rounds on active patients at Wishard Hospital (Monday through Friday). At the end of the month, residents will give a short presentation on a palliative care topic. Residents will also be expected to attend relevant morning reports, grand rounds and noon conferences. Typically, there will be no evening or week-end call (except for the usual jeopardy call).
The objectives of this elective are:
- To learn about the range of palliative care issues facing patients and providers at Wishard Health Services including advance care planning and good communication about end-of-life decisions.
- To learn effective treatment of pain and non-pain symptoms in palliative care patients.
- To learn an interdisciplinary approach to patient care, the value of expert emotional, social and spiritual support; and the importance of cultural diversity to good patient care.
- To learn the role of hospice care for terminally ill patients in various settings (hospital, nursing home and home).
