Even Palliative Care Doctors Have Never Experienced Anything Like This Before
Palliative care physicians specialize in easing suffering—their job is to support patients and their families as they manage serious illnesses. They know the value of making time for compassion in the midst of a crisis. These days, palliative doctors and nurses are being called into hospital emergency rooms more and more to help the doctors manage the crushing numbers of COVID-19 patients.
CAPC Faculty and Chief, Department of Palliative Care at ProHEALTH an OPTUM Company Dr. Dana Lustbader tells Slate how this moment might change our approach to palliative care, and how to practice empathy in some of this pandemic’s most difficult moments.