Palliative Pearls

April 2021 – When assessing pain in a nonverbal or cognitively compromised patient, consider symptoms of agitation and fear as clues. Consider Mrs. Jones: She is getting more agitated with her t...

March 2021 – Patients with dementia and their families benefit from specialized end-of-life support Hospice care provides: Goal setting with families Teaching on what to expect with the decline ...

February 2021 –When palliating heart failure with difficult to control atrial fibrillation, remember our old friend digoxin. Consider Mr. Jones: His atrial fibrillation is marginally controlled ...

January 2021 – “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”                                      Adapted...

December 2020 – Grief counselling is available to the community at large from Hospice of the Northwest. Any member of our community can use Hospice of the Northwest for grief support. We offer b...

November 2020 – When your computer is tired and behaving badly, turn it off and count to 10. Always the first question from the IT help desk:  “Did you try powering down?”  Can we ...

October 2020 – “There’s nothing more we can do . . .”  has no place in end of life care. Use language that offers care that is needed now:  Urgent and careful management of symptoms ...

August 2020 – Time limited trials of therapy are a powerful tool when the benefit/burden balance of treatment is uncertain. This approach has many benefits ·      ...

July 2020 – Deliver a one-two punch:  increase gut motility and stool moisture with scheduled meds. Constipation is predictable.  Think hospitalization, immobility, newly prescribed opioid...

June 2020 – Methadone…worth the trouble. Don’t write off methadone as a pain medication – it may be life changing for your palliative patients. A few reasons why: Methadone is the only lon...