PalCare
Palliative Care at Arkansas Children’s Hospital
Promoting life in the midst of life-limiting illness
Goals of palliative care
- Sensitive and effective communication about treatment goals and choices
- Physical and psychosocial comfort and support
- High quality of life for the patient and family
- Improved continuity of care
What kinds of patients are appropriate for PalCare services?
Patients with:
- A life-limiting illness or condition
- Needs for additional help and attention with:
- Psychosocial support and continuity of care
- Advance directives and decisionmaking
- Physical comfort concerns
What can PalCare offer treatment teams?
- Assistance with communication with patients and families regarding difficult issues relating to diagnosis, prognosis, treatment options, comfort issues, and quality of life
- Help with coordination of care for patients receiving care from different sources and services
- Increased focus on assessing and meeting patient and family concerns, support and comfort needs, and bereavement issues
- A one-time consult for complicated situations involving life-threatening or life-limiting illnesses and conditions without the expectation of continued PalCare involvement
- Inservices and continuing education on palliative care and end of life issues
Important points to understand about palliative care:
- Palliative care means helping the patient and family have a good life no matter how long life will be
- PalCare is not hospice
- Patients and families do not lose any treatment options when receiving palliative care services
- Patients do not have to make any advance care plans in order to receive palliative care services
- PalCare involvement and support is available for as long as needed and can also be stopped at any time at the patient and family’s request
To contact PalCare call:
501-364-6658
Back
|
