Establishing a Hybrid Tele-Palliative Care Service Line in Rural Communities during a Pandemic
90 Minute Workshops ~ Sunday, August 21, 2022 – 2:45 pm – 4:15 pm
Workshop Level: Intermediate*
NACC Certification Competencies: ITP5, PPS9, OL2.1, OL3
Presenters:
Dr. Gregg K. Vandekeift MD, MA, FAAFP, FAAHPM
Medical Director, Palliative Practice Group, Providence Institute for Human Caring
Olympia, WA
Eve Kelly Corcoran ME, MS, BCC
Chief Mission Officer, Director Spiritual Health & Executive Lead Palliative Care Services, Providence Stevens County Ministries
Colville, WA
Adrienne “Adie” Goldberg PhD, LICSW
Palliative Care Social Worker, Providence Institute for Human Caring
Spokane, WA
Amber Moody BSN, RN, CHPN
Palliative Care Nurse
Providence Stevens County Ministries
Colville, WA
About this workshop
Social isolation and contact precautions have spurred tele-health services to the front of the line. Rural health care has the added challenge of disparity in care for several reasons, some of which are: lack of transportation to and from medical appointments, patient ability to fill prescriptions, lack of local specialty care, and patient access to internet services. Working collaboratively to identify asset and gaps in previous services, our current model incorporates Tele-health care in order to deepen our patient-family-caregiver relationships of understanding towards a specified direction of care.
Palliative Care programs are a practice of offering dignified care, based upon the patient’s desires for treatment, comfort, meaning, hope, and prognosis. Rural Providence Mount Carmel and St. Joseph’s Hospitals are both critical access hospitals whose patients are now benefiting from access to a Palliative Physician and Palliative Licensed Clinical Social Worker care through Zoom™. Unable to fulfill rosters for needed positions, Providence’s ministries offer exceptional care through its Tele-health programs; palliative care consults being the most recent service added to Tele-ICU, Tele-Psych and Tele-Stroke services. This has been a process of learning, stretching, and growth. Come and learn from Providence’s experiences and successes of beginning and refining its Tele-Palliative Care Services as a multi-disciplinary team in order to expand the care offered in its ministries.
As a result of this workshop, participants will:
- Identify best practices in establishing a rural palliative care program.
- List the challenges of introducing a new service line during a pandemic.
- Describe the components of a Tele-Palliative Care Consult.
Educational Materials
(recommended books, articles, or websites for participants to review prior to the workshop)
Telemedicine: Virtual Connection in an Age of Social Distancing – from the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CPMC)
Telemedicine: Ensuring Safe, Equitable, Person-Centered Virtual Care – from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)
The Washington Rural Palliative Care Initiative Handbook (July 2020) from the Washington State Department of Health
Telehealth Start-Up Guide (CAPC)
Palliative Care Road Map from the Washington State Department of Health
Palliative Care Telehealth Sample Guidelines
Presentation Materials
(items to be brought to the workshop and/or presentation materials)
– none required
The NACC categorizes workshops on three levels: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced. The definitions of each level are provided below.
Beginner: Basic information on the topic for those with little background in the area.
Intermediate: Basic plus additional information on the topic for those with some background in the area.
Advanced: Specialized information on the topic for those with extensive experience and/or knowledge in the area.
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