Education and Training

General Information Websites
Training / Teaching Resources
Patient / Family Education
Online Learning Resources
Clinical Resources

*Items marked with an asterix are especially useful materials for Self Learning, of special benefit for MDs/RNs to enhance Palliative Care Knowledge

General Information Websites

* EPERC End of Life/Palliative Education Resource Center: Searchable database of educational materials, articles, books, videos, weblinks, etc.

The End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC): A comprehensive, national education program to improve end-of-life care by nurses, and is funded by a major grant from The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Primary project goals are to develop a core of expert nursing educators and to coordinate national nursing education efforts in end-of-life care.

Palliative Medicine Resources on the Internet: This site from the University of Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Science provides helpful clinical and education weblinks, including access to their General Internal Medicine's online course, Palliative Medicine, MED-880.

Project on Death in America-Library Catalog: This is the online catalog of the holdings of the Library of the Project on Death in America (PDIA) in New York. The library catalog is provided here for reference purposes. The approximately 600 documents in the PDIA Library collection in New York include primarily books, non-governmental organization reports, and videos concerned with such topics as death and dying, bereavement, grief, mourning, and palliative care.

Association of Professional Chaplains
The Association of Professional Chaplains is an interfaith professional pastoral care association of providers of pastoral care endorsed by faith groups to serve persons in physical, spiritual, or mental need in diverse settings throughout the world.

Training / Teaching Resources

AAHPM Pocket Guide to Hospice/Palliative Medicine. (American Association of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, 2003). Clinically oriented reference that describes palliative medicine interventions for improving a patient's quality of life, particularly at the end of life. It is specifically targeted to medical residents and practicing physicians not already expert in end-of-life care.

AAHPM: Core Curriculum and Review Syllabus. (American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, 1999). A 186-page comprehensive curriculum; each chapter contains a content outline, learning objectives, and references. Twenty Modules include information about the philosophy and standards of care, and the roles of the medical director, staff physician, and attending physician.

* AAHPM Unipacs 1-8: Hospice and Palliative Care Training for Physicians. (American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, 2003). An 8-part series of self-instructional books covering physical and psychological symptoms, ethics, and legal aspects of end-of-life care.

* Optimizing Cancer Care-The Importance of Symptom Management (American Society of Clinical Oncology) This cancer care focused submission, created by the American Society of Clinical Oncology includes a CD Rom, course syllabi, evaluation forms, PowerPoint slides and a self-study guide book for 29 different modules. This curriculum was designed to be used either as self-study material for practicing oncologists to earn CME credit OR for teaching purposes with a variety of medical audiences.

Compendium of Pediatric Palliative Care (Children's International Project on Palliative/Hospice Services (ChiPPS). The Compendium, is a comprehensive reference on pediatric palliative care and could be used as a self study guide.

* Communication Teaching Modules for the End-of-Life Educator (Weissman DE and Biernat K). This six part educational curriculum includes educational objectives, role plays, learner handouts, Power Point slides (provided on disk), a videotape and evaluation instruments to assist the instructor in teaching about communication issues in palliative care. The sections include: Breaking Bad News, Setting treatment Goals, Conducting a Family Conference, DNR Orders, Referral to Hospice and Spiritual Issues.

Education and Training Curriculum for Pediatric Palliative Care: (Children's International Project on Palliative/Hospice Services (ChiPPS). A core curriculum that can be used to design, develop, and implement individualized educational and training programs. Its contents are designed to be relevant to the needs of many, varied populations of health care professionals and others who work with or wish to work with children or adolescents who are diagnosed as having, living with, or dying from a life-threatening condition.

* EPEC Curriculum: EPEC has designed a core set of educational materials to enhance training presentations in palliative and end-of-life care. These materials may be adapted to any educational format - from full two-day conferences to single topic grand round presentations, medical school curricula, seminars, or even self-study.

* Fast Facts and Concepts : One page quanta of key clinical information, ideal for brief educational encounters, self study or handouts.

The Initiative for Pediatric Palliative Care: The IPPC Curriculum, currently under development, is composed of six modules. The modules are designed to facilitate individual clinician learning and strengthen an institution's programs and services. These goals are accomplished by focusing on knowledge, attitudes, skills, and institutional practice.

Harvard Medical School Program in Palliative Care Education and Practice: The Program in Palliative Care Education and Practice offers intensive learning experiences for physician and nurse educators who wish to become experts in the clinical practice and teaching of comprehensive, interdisciplinary palliative care, as well as gain expertise in leading and managing improvements in palliative care education and practice at their own institutions.

* Palliative Care: A self-study CME Course: EPERC has developed a self-study CME course containing 15 key topics in palliative care. The course is divided into four modules: End of Life Care, Pain, Other Symptoms, and Communication.

* Palliative Care for People with HIV/AIDS: A Curriculum and Teaching Resource for Medical Educators: The curriculum includes six modules: Overview, Advance Care Planning, Communication, Culture and Ethnicity, Psychosocial, Psychological, & Spiritual Issues, and Pain and Symptom Management. Each module provides PowerPoint presentations with speaker notes and facilitator training tips.

Pain Management Tool: Developed by Fairview Health Services, this instrument provides at a glance information on clinical issues such as pain assessment, opioid usage, adjuvant agents and neuropathic pain analgesics.

A Practical Guide to Communication Skills in Clinical Practice Dr. Robert Buckman et al. E-mail for ordering: A comprehensive guide to communication skills presented as a set well designed, and easy to navigate CD ROMs (also available as five videotapes).

Toolkit for nurturing excellence at end-of-life transition (TNEEL) . An education package designed for nurse educators.

Patient / Family Education

getpalliativecare.org

CAPC has created getpalliativecare.org, a palliative care resource for consumers that also includes sections for clinicians and policymakers. This website is easy to navigate and provides clear, comprehensive palliative care information to patients and families coping with serious illness.

Key components of the site include a Palliative Care Directory of Hospitals, a definition and detailed description of what palliative care is, direct links to palliative care-related organizations and a brief questionnaire to assist patients and families in determining whether palliative care is appropriate for them or their loved ones.

Handout for patients and families.
Getpalliativecare.org contains a downloadable Handout that clinicians can give to patients and families.

Sample Marketing Brochures
CAPC offers access to sample palliative care brochures that are used by successful programs.

Online Learning Resources

Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC)
CAPC Campus Online^SM

The Center to Advance Palliative Care has developed CAPC Campus Online^SM, an e-learning space where you’ll find courses covering all the structural, operational and financial essentials of palliative care program development and sustainability. Course offerings are designed for programs at every stage of development. Level 1 courses are appropriate if you are exploring, planning or starting a palliative care program. Level 2 courses are geared to active programs, at any level of maturity.

Course topics will include Hospital Cost Avoidance, Calculating Staffing Needs, The Business Plan, Strategic Planning and others. All courses offer CME and CEU credits for participants and may contain the following components: recommended readings; pre-tests; lesson pages with interactive web-links; learner worksheets; exercises; situational examples; glossaries and resource pages; references; post-tests and course evaluations.

Registration for CAPC Campus Online^SM is Summer, 2008! Information will be posted on www.capc.org.

* EPEC Online Learning:

The complete EPEC Curriculum is now available as Online Learning for CME credit. EPEC Online Learning provides convenient access to learning the core skills of palliative care. It teaches skills in communication, ethical decision-making, symptom management, psychosocial considerations, and palliative care.

EPEC Online Learning is sponsored by the office of Continuing Medical Education at the Feinberg School of Medicine. The target audience is physicians and other health care professionals who are engaged in palliative care education and clinical practice.

End of Life Online Curriculum

This curriculum, funded in part by NIH, the Dept of Veterans Affairs and Stanford University School of Medicine, has nine stand- alone modules. Each module is designed to provide at least one hour worth of instruction. The curriculum also has a list of resources and references designed to provide many hours of further self directed learning. Highlights include:

World class authors
Rich multi media ( video cases, animations, interactive exercises)
Quizzes, pre test and post tests
Clinical pearls, practical tips, flow charts and tables

National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO)
Hospice Manager Development Program (MDP)

NHPCO’s Hospice MDP is the only comprehensive management training program available that provides hospice-specific information and helps managers develop the skills they need to meet the challenges and changes they face in managing programs, systems and people. The initial component of the Hospice MDP is a two-day foundational course that provides 5 foundational modules of the Hospice MDP. Following the two-day course, participants complete 2 additional modules at their own pace to obtain their Level I Designation. Participants then begin Level II modules, choosing from a menu of options designed to meet their specific needs and enhance their effectiveness.

For more information visit their website or call the Professional Education Office at 703/647-5178.

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