What is Palliative Care?
“Palliative” means to relieve or reduce pain and discomfort. The goal of palliative care is to prevent and relieve suffering, and to support the best possible quality of life for patients and their families, regardless of their stage of disease or the need for other therapies, in accordance with their values and preferences. Palliative Care provides relief from pain and other symptoms. Comforts whether one has years, months or days to live and is appropriate at any age. Palliative Care helps with the emotional and spiritual needs of patients and families. Also, it offers a support system to help patients live as actively as possible as long as possible and it offers a support system to help the family cope during the patient’s illness and in their own grieving.
Palliative Care Services Treat the Whole Person and May Include:
- Exploring patient goals and wishes
- Clarifying medication and treatments
- Promoting communication with the health care team
- Supporting the completion of an advance directive
- Discussing pain and symptom management and the meaning of comfort care
- Providing information and support regarding home care, skilled nursing, and hospice care
