Palliative Care Provider (MD, PA, and NP) Onboarding Curriculum

An introduction to palliative care, how it is delivered, its impact on quality of life, and the growing population of patients who need it.

Conducting a comprehensive pain assessment to guide safe and effective treatment.

Selecting a safe and appropriate analgesic for patients with serious illness based on the pain assessment.

Patient and family factors that influence prescribing decisions for patients with serious illness.

Integrating routine risk assessment for substance use disorder when considering or using opioid therapy.

Designing a safe and effective opioid trial for the patient with serious illness.

Safe and appropriate opioid prescribing for the opioid-naive patient with serious illness.

Four indications for using short-acting opioids.

Ongoing evaluation of opioid benefits, risks, and side effects for the patient with serious illness.

Guidance on safe conversion to long-acting opioids for patients with serious illness.

Prescribing practice for long half-life opioids, converting from one opioid to another, and accounting for incomplete cross-tolerance.

Changing the route of opioid delivery, rotating opioids, advanced opioid conversions, and tapering opioids.

Safe opioid prescribing in older adults, cognitively impaired patients, children, and the imminently dying, including patient-controlled analgesia.

Pain management for patients with serious illness and high risk for substance use disorder, including risk assessment, monitoring, and when to refer for safe pain management.

Safe opioid prescribing for patients with serious illness, using the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) Guidelines for the Chronic Use of Opioid Analgesics.

After completing this course, learners will be equipped with evidence-based strategies to identify and treat anxiety in patients living with a serious illness.

Constipation occurs in at least 70% of patients living with a serious illness and often goes unrecognized. After completing this course, learners will have the tools to successfully identify and manage the impact of constipation.

After completing this course, learners will have the tools to accurately identify and treat depression in patients living with a serious illness.

After completing this course, learners will have the tools they need to manage dyspnea, including the physical causes of shortness of breath and the emotional impact on the patient.

Nausea and vomiting are common symptoms of serious illness and can cause dangerous complications. After completing this course, learners will be equipped with practical skills to identify, manage, and reduce these symptoms.

Learn best practices for having patient-centered conversations about a serious illness diagnosis.

Learn how to effectively discuss prognosis with patients and their caregivers.

Learn best practices for building trust, eliciting patient values, and having patient-centered conversations about goals of care.

Learn to effectively lead meetings that help patients and caregivers become aligned around the patient’s goals.

Learn techniques to help patients and their caregivers plan for the future, both during the early stages of a serious illness and as a disease progresses.

Gain an overview of the experience of living with dementia and learn how to relieve distress for patients with dementia, and their caregivers.

Learn how to discuss a dementia diagnosis with patients and caregivers in a way that is sensitive, clear, and supportive.

Learn techniques for supportive communication with people living with dementia, and their caregivers, to help them prepare for the challenges they may face as dementia progresses.

Learn how to facilitate future planning discussions with people living with dementia, and their caregivers.

Learn how to assess caregiver burden and connect caregivers with needed support systems.

Learn about the sources of behavioral symptoms for people living with dementia and how to respond to them.

Learn how to relieve suffering from common mood and sleep disturbances in order to improve quality of life for people living with dementia, and caregivers.

Learn about common health complications for people living with advanced dementia and how to support patients and caregivers.

The role of the direct care worker in observing and reporting suffering in patients with serious illness.

Assessing and supporting caregivers of people with serious illness.

Guidance for all clinicians on improving communication and ensuring smooth transitions of care for patients living with serious illness.

This course provides context and best practices for identifying older adults at risk for poor outcomes, including falls, delirium, and caregiving challenges.