Palliative Care
  

A Special Level of Care
A serious illness can bring special problems and challenges—for you and for your family members. These problems may be physical, such as pain, fatigue or nausea, or they may be emotional, such as stress or anxiety. Helping you make your life the best it can be during your illness is the objective of the Palliative Care Service at Saint Vincent Health Center.

Members of the Palliative Care Team work with your physician to control your symptoms and provide emotional, social and spiritual support. Team members can arrange family conferences with your caregivers to help you and your family better understand your current medical situation and what to expect in the future. You may need help in adjusting to new physical limitations or coping with family issues.

Information and communication are important aspects of palliative care. Members of the Palliative Care Team can also help to define the goals of care, assist you with complex medical decision-making and support meaningful communication between you and your family and friends. The multidisciplinary team includes a physician, a pharmacist and a chaplain in addition to nurses, who work closely with your primary care doctor to ensure complete, well-coordinated treatment. Their services will not replace the other treatments you are receiving, but will support them. If there are several physicians already involved in your care, the team will will work with them to complement the care delivery process. It is important to know that palliative care is different from hospice care, which is limited to people with terminal illness in the last stages of life, although many of the services are the same.

Palliative care can be offered at any stage of any illness—before, during or after treatment— but is most helpful when it is introduced early in the plan of care.

You may wish to consider palliative care if you:

• Are suffering from symptoms that are hard to treat, such as pain, nausea, fatigue, depression or anxiety
• Need help in understanding treatment choices
• Want support in making difficult medical decisions
• Need assistance with coordinating treatments from different caregivers

Services are provided through physician referral and are covered by most insurance plans. Your palliative care plan will be individualized to your needs and the needs of your family. If you think you could benefit from Palliative Care Services, talk to your doctor.  

The Palliative Care Team
Michael Cooney, MD
Matt Scola , PharmD
Carla Mayhugh , RN, MSN, oncology specialist
Betsy DiSantis, RN, BSN, outcome care manager
Barbara Arvanitopulos , RN, MSN, director of Behavioral Services
Fr. Dennis Martin, Pastoral Care

Palliative Care Services
• Symptom Control
• Pain
• Nausea
• Fatigue
• Anxiety
• Shortness of Breath
• Coordination of Treatment
• Emotional and Spiritual Support
• Information and Communication
• Help with Setting Goals and Making Decisions
• Expert relief of pain, nausea and other symptoms related to the disease process
• Enhanced patient and family satisfaction through education and coordinated transitioning between care settings
• Reduced ICU days
• Improved clinical outcomes

For more information, call Saint Vincent Palliative Care Services
at 814/452-5300.