Effective palliative care leaders balance the needs of their patients and families, teams, organizations, and external partners. Use this toolkit to draft a strategic plan for delivery of high-quality palliative care, support your team to execute on the plan, build your standing as a leader, and connect with fellow palliative care leaders.

What’s in the Toolkit

If you don’t know where you’re going, it doesn’t matter how you get there. The strategic plan articulates your mission and how your program will accomplish it. It is an essential roadmap and communication tool for your team, organizational leaders, and referrers.

National Consensus Project for Quality Palliative Care, 4th edition

The National Consensus Project (NCP) Clinical Practice Guidelines are the national standard for high quality palliative care. National Consensus Project for Quality Palliative Care, 2018.

Needs Assessment for the Hospital Palliative Care Program

Evaluating patient need, service requirements, and stakeholder priorities for the inpatient program.

Needs Assessment: Ensuring Successful Community-Based Palliative Care

Evaluating patient need, service requirements, care settings, and stakeholder priorities for the community-based palliative care program.

Improving Team Performance

Strategic planning for new or veteran programs, and a framework for identification of barriers to team efficiency and team health.

Sample Palliative Care Program Mission Statements
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Five sample palliative care mission statements defining the aims of the program. Center to Advance Palliative Care, 2015.

Sample Strategic Plan
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Example shared by Lee Health, 2012.

Sample Palliative Care Scope of Practice for the Home-Based Team
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Shared by Interim HealthCare/CarePoint, 2017

Connect with peers and field experts on CAPC’s faculty: just-in-time problem solving, shared advice, new ideas, and peer mentoring.

Virtual Office Hours

Small-group consulting calls with national subject matter experts.

Palliative Care Leadership Centers™

Palliative Care Leadership Centers (PCLC) offer hospitals two days of in-person, customized operational training and one year of mentoring.

Online and in-person skill-building resources for palliative care leaders from all disciplines.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Principles for Palliative Care Leaders
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Foundational guidance for leaders to integrate diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging principles into health care organizations.

How Providing Feedback Helps to Build Team Connection and Trust

In this on-demand webinar, Donna Stevens, MHA, and a panel of palliative care leaders will explore the benefits of consistent, honest feedback offered in different formats.

A Leadership Panel: Creating Positive Change Amidst Chaos and Uncertainty

In this on demand webinar, A Leadership Panel: Creating Positive Change Amidst Chaos and Uncertainty, attendees will learn how to lead positive change.

The Only Constant is Change: Principles of Effective Change Management

In this webinar, presenters will use a pediatric palliative care program as a case example, leading participants through the critical steps of an effective change management initiative.

Building and Supporting Effective Palliative Care Teams

Hire and onboard your staff, manage program operations, and ensure a healthy high-functioning team using this toolkit.

Needs Assessment for the Hospital Palliative Care Program

Evaluating patient need, service requirements, and stakeholder priorities for the inpatient program.

Needs Assessment: Ensuring Successful Community-Based Palliative Care

Evaluating patient need, service requirements, care settings, and stakeholder priorities for the community-based palliative care program.

Improving Team Performance

Strategic planning for new or veteran programs, and a framework for identification of barriers to team efficiency and team health.

American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM)

Advancing hospice and palliative medicine and palliative care physician leadership.

The American Association for Physician Leadership (AAPL)

Educational pathways for physician leadership for all specialties.

Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association (HPNA)

Palliative care nursing leadership and professional development.

Essential Palliative Nurse Leadership in a Changing Health Care Environment
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Presenters: Constance Dahlin, APN-BC, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN and Lolita Melhado, PhD, ARNP, FNP-BC. CAPC Seminar, 2016.

Nursing Leadership Assessment Tool
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Worksheet to accompany "Essential Nurse Leadership Skills" Presentation.

Social Work Hospice & Palliative Care Network (SWHPN)

Palliative care social work leadership and professional development.

Anticipating Stakeholder Reactions
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This document can help you respond to questions from senior leaders and decision-makers as you work to secure financial support for your palliative care program.

Leading Through a Crisis: Tips from the Field
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Leadership is critical during a crisis to stabilize and deliver quality care, but also to ensure the team and organization are thinking and planning beyond the crisis. CAPC has gathered and synthesized advice and tips from program leaders from across the country to help provide leadership guidance during crises.

Leading Through a Crisis: Recommended Reading
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A list of helpful books, articles, and references focused on leadership during a crisis.

Articulating the value of the palliative care program to your stakeholders is the key to resources and support.

Demonstrating Value to Stakeholders

Tools to make the case for palliative care resources and financial partnerships, including the palliative care evidence base and downloadable tools for presenting the case.

Building Financial Relationships

Resources for palliative care programs working with payers and other financial stakeholders.

Use this toolkit to hire, onboard, retain, and support a healthy team.

Building and Supporting Effective Palliative Care Teams

Hire and onboard your staff, manage program operations, and ensure a healthy high-functioning team using this toolkit.

Improving Team Performance

Strategic planning for new or veteran programs, and a framework for identification of barriers to team efficiency and team health.

Tools to make the case for palliative care resources and financial partnerships, including the palliative care evidence base and downloadable tools for presenting the case. Includes 27 resources.
Strategic planning for program growth, including making the case, demonstrating value, and strengthening relationships with partners. Includes 22 resources.
Hire and onboard your staff, manage program operations, and ensure a healthy high-functioning team using this toolkit. Includes 73 resources.

See all 47 Toolkits

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