Palliative Care

Palliative care doctor bridges health-care worlds

Michael Anderson, a doctor of Mohawk and English-Canadian ancestry, is drawing on Indigenous knowledge to not only improve palliative care – but also discover his culture and himself.

Holy health care, Batman! Do you have a plan for What if …?

What if you needed urgent medical care, but someone else had to speak on your behalf about the care that you'd receive? Advance care planning would prepare you for such a situation. Don't leave it to others to make guesses about your care.

Western’s Centre for Palliative Care is an idea whose time has come

Western University may open an institute meant to foster cross-disciplinary innovation in the field of palliative care. If fully realized, it could transform health care in southwestern Ontario. Now, let's go even farther.

Virtual care evens the odds in ‘palliative care lottery’

While virtual care comes with drawbacks that must be carefully managed, it will ultimately be a huge step forward in improving access to palliative care in Ontario and Canada.

‘You need not be alone anymore’: The doctor redefining palliative care

Dr. Ramona Mahtani has led an effort to integrate palliative care into siloed medical specializations throughout the pandemic. In doing so, she has put forward a bold, boundary-pushing vision of what palliative care can be.

In praise of nurses – and Grammy

In hospice settings, nurses wet the mouths of patients as they take their last breaths. Sometimes, they simply sit with them so that no one dies alone. As a physician, I could not do my job without them.

HOMR’s Odyssey: Calculating palliative need in real time

By using tools that identify which patients have an elevated risk of mortality in the coming year, we can catch patients who would benefit from palliative care planning before they fall through the cracks.

Lessons from Down Under – Eight pillars to support palliative care

During the pandemic, we Canadians could learn a thing or two from our Aussie friends Down Under. This includes important lessons on palliative care.

Bazinga! A unified model of palliative care in Ontario

To ensure access to high-quality palliative care for all Ontarians facing a life-limiting illness, we need a unified model of palliative care across Ontario.

Focus on palliative care will help hospitals recover from COVID-19

To address the surgical backlog caused by COVID-19, we need community-based palliative care to free up important hospital resources.

Why choose palliative care?

You may assume that palliative care is synonymous with end-of-life or hospice care. Our goal is to eliminate this common misconception.

If not now, when? Applying a palliative approach in long-term care

Bill 3 is a good start but more must be done for palliative care

Palliative vs. supportive: The zombie argument that refuses to die

Changing the name of palliative care to "supportive care" would be a lazy substitute for the important work of educating patients, families, caregivers and clinicians alike on what palliative care actually is.

Palliative care needs better PR

What are we willing to pay for the quality of death we want?

NIMBYism? We’ll take that hospice, thanks!

A tale of two patients: The ‘postal code’ lottery of palliative care

Virus vs. Visitors – Why long-term care needs a palliative approach

‘Tell me it will be OK:’ Learning to deal with patients’ pain

As a surgical resident, a huge part of my job is, unexpectedly, palliation. But I’ve never received training on how to do it. Am I doing it right? I wonder.