In the setting of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the recognition of systemic racism in our institutions, the symptom management, emotional/psychological support and advance care planning at the core of palliative care—once considered “an extra layer of support” —have been revealed as instrumental to individuals, families, communities, and countries facing the threat of the global pandemic. In this article, we outline the primary palliative care education efforts of one palliative care education center (The MERI Center at UCSF/Mt Zion campus) and detail the critical adjustments necessary and opportunities found in the COVID crisis.
FerrellBRTemelJSTeminS, et al.Integration of palliative care into standard oncology care: American Society of Clinical Oncology Clinical Practice guideline update. J Clin Oncol. 2017;35(1):96–112.
QuillTEAbernethyAP. Generalist plus specialist palliative care – creating a more sustainable model. N Engl J Med. 2013;368(13):1173–1175.
6.
RadbruchLKnaulFMde LimaLde JoncheereCBhadeliaA. The key role of palliative care in response to the COVID-19 tsunami of suffering. Lancet. 2020;395(10235):1467–1469.
RobertsBWrightSMChristmasCRobertsonMWuDS. COVID-19 pandemic response: development of outpatient palliative care toolkit based on narrative communication. Am J Hosp Palliat Care. 2020;37(11):985–987.
9.
RabowMWMcGowanMSmallRKeyssarRRugoHS. Advance care planning in community: an evaluation of a pilot 2-session, Nurse-Led Workshop. Am J Hosp Palliat Care. 2019;36(2):143–146.
10.
BowmanBABackALEschAEMarshallN. Crisis symptom management and patient communication protocols are important tools for all clinicians responding to COVID-19. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2020;60(2):e98–e100.
