A successful palliative care program is designed to fully reflect the unique mission, needs, and constraints of the hospital it serves.

It is critical that the Palliative Care planning team create a program that matches their hospital’s unique circumstances.

Program design addresses the type and volume of patients that will be served, how they will be referred, and the type of program and palliative care team that will care for them.

A Palliative Care Program is designed by completing the following steps:

• Assemble the Core Planning Team
• Mission Alignment
• System & Needs Assessment
• Program Characteristics to Consider
• Presenting the Business Plan

The program design completed at this stage will enable the planning team to budget for the program and plan for its implementation.

The design may require modification once implementation begins, and it will likely require further adjustment as the program grows and evolves. These changes are important.

A strong palliative care program adjusts to accommodate shifts in hospital priorities and patient needs. Programs require this flexibility and responsiveness in order to retain their base of support and remain successful over time.

CAPC's Guide to Building a Hospital-Based Palliative Care Program expands the information on this website and provides detailed information and sample tools for designing a program.