Explore discipline-specific and team-focused strategies for ensuring that your documentation facilitates communication and supports effective and productive relationships within the team and referral sources. If you are looking to build a more cohesive team and improve documentation and referral processes, this course is for you.

• How to accurately extract and document the most pertinent information about complex cases
• Communicate information and the perspective of your discipline in a way that other disciplines can understand
• Implement best-practice documentation templates
• State what is needed to meet standards for reimbursement
• Participate with other team members in a discussion about documentation that supports inter-professional practice in your setting
• Prepare to make an agreement with your team about documentation practices in your setting that meet standards for quality and timeliness using your current health record system.

•  3 continuing education (CE) credits approved by the California State University San Marcos, and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).

• Master the technology required for a telemedicine visit
• Help the team/organization and patient/family prepare for a telemedicine visit
• Establish rapport and communicate compassionate presence in a virtual medium
• Apply observational skills and other methods to conduct a telemedicine examination
• Effectively document the telemedicine visit
• Follow billing, regulatory, and compliance requirements that impact the use of telemedicine

• 4 continuing education (CE) credits approved by the California State University San Marcos and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).
• The Doctors Company is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical educational activities for physicians.

• Physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, or any clinician likely to conduct patient or family visits via telemedicine.

• Describe why self-care is important in working with seriously-ill patients
• Understand and employ effective self-care strategies and strategies to strengthen resilience
• Identify three strategies to strengthen resilience

• 1 continuing education (CE) credit provided by California State University San Marcos (CSUSM) Extended Learning, accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC)
• The Doctors Company designates this activity for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1.0 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of The Doctors Company and Shiley Haynes Institute for Palliative Care (CSU). The Doctors Company is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

• Understand the theoretical framework guiding motivational interviewing as an approach to creating person-centered plans
• Identify research outcomes that support motivational interviewing best practices
• Define what is meant by the “spirit” of motivational interviewing
• Contrast the motivational interviewing concept of “change” with the healthcare “goal-setting” focus
• Discuss the use of decisional balance for fine-tuning plans
• Demonstrate the application of specific techniques and interventions in case-based situations

• Investigate how essential oils can be instrumental in promoting physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health
• Establish a foundation in essential oil safety
• Explore the definition and history of “healing”
• Identify other potential uses of essential oils such as creating essential oil blends, hydrosols, and more
• Choose proper essential oils to address specific issues, symptoms, and illness

• Compare and contrast active listening and passive listening, including non-verbal communication cues
• Gently elicit information from pediatric patients and families about the physical, social, and spiritual areas of their lives
• Articulate phrases that are supportive of families and avoid those that are not
• Apply the steps of the SPIKES protocol during the first visit to pediatric patients and families
• Identify existing skills and abilities that palliative care staff have that will translate in caring for young patients and families

• Identify and apply bereavement support needs of parents and other adult family members
• Differentiate the unique bereavement needs of children
• Understand the evolving creation of legacy, including options for creating keepsakes
• Assess individual patient and family needs regarding the creation of legacy and integrate those needs into the care plan

• Explore effective strategies designed to encourage patient participation in advance care planning conversations
• Review case studies illustrating the application of CPT codes in various scenarios
• Understand when and how to bill Medicare for advance care planning
• Practice coding in interactive exercises and apply concepts and skills

• Assess how personal and professional perspectives affect your interactions with people of other cultures
• Understand how a patient’s culture might affect the care they receive
• Recognize potential benefits of culturally competent care
• Use culturally competent skills to interact with patients and families as you implement the expanded definition of palliative care
• Implement practical changes that positively impact staff and patient communications
• Feel confident that your communication with people of other cultures is respectful and clear

• Understand the essentials of palliative care
• Explore communication -- the heart and soul of palliative care
• Identify and apply concepts of working with diversity through inclusivity
• Understand spiritual and existential dimensions of palliative care
• Recognize ways that palliative care teams can support patients and families as they cope with their experiences of loss and grief
• Define and create a context for self-care in the work of palliative care teams

• Describe both the life cycle approach and the values-based perspective to advance care planning
• Articulate the importance of advance care planning and describe trends in healthcare that make planning an urgent need in some settings
• List three outcomes of successful advance care planning
• Define relevant legal terms including advance healthcare directive, durable power of attorney for healthcare, living will, surrogate, capacity, and competency
• Outline the steps in advance care planning
• Recognize and understand the forms used in advance care planning. List three differences between advance healthcare directives and the physician orders for life-sustaining treatment

• Learn the skills needed to engage in effective advance care planning conversations
• Describe the importance of advance care planning conversations in the context of medical aid in dying
• Know how to start advance care planning conversations
• Practice an advance care planning conversation

• Define a palliative care approach to supportive nutrition
• Understand the link between nutrition and mental health
• Use the Food Story tool to get a holistic understanding of nourishment
• Recognize the role of cultural and spiritual traditions in nutrition
• Use evidence-based principles to promote optimal nutrition
• Apply a whole-person model of care using principles of integrative medicine
• Differentiate nutritional screening from nutritional assessment
• Identify the underlying dynamics of food-drug interactions
• Understand how nutrition affects common symptoms of serious illness

• Learn how to prepare for the initial home visit
• Understand ways in which to build rapport with the child, teen, or young adult
• Explore effective ways to communicate with parents and other family members
• Identify goals of care

• Learn methods for acknowledging suffering and examining its redemptive value
• Define types of grief in the context of the pediatric patient and family and illustrate how they may impact the approach to care
• Assess parent perceptions about sharing information with the child and describe strategies for providing therapeutic support
• Create an age-appropriate plan of care to support the spiritual care needs of the child
• List techniques patients and families can use to document and honor meaning
• Illustrate ways for loved ones to create remembrances and helpful rituals for bereavement support

• Overview of art and how it facilitates healing
• Learn about the history of healing arts and how to structure healing arts sessions
• Develop an understanding for the client-centered approach to build rapport
• Learn communication strategies to promote insight and healing
• Completion of a hands-on visual arts activity

• Assess personal knowledge, skills, and experience in pediatric care
• Explore and identify fears or concerns in caring for the pediatric population
• Compare and contrast the differences in caring for the pediatric and adult hospice and palliative care patients
• Identify how to apply the clinician’s current skill set to build confidence and competence in pediatric care
• Examine and discuss self-care activities for the clinician

• Introduction to Pediatric Palliative Care
• Communication Skills for Pediatric Patients and Family Support – Basic/Foundational/Advanced
• Concepts in Easing Suffering and Promoting Healing in Pediatric Patients – Basic/Foundational/Advanced
• Pediatric Team Support
• Pediatric Ethical Principles and Challenges

• Learn about palliative care theories and principles
• Understand the principles and practice of advance care planning
• Get an overview of therapeutic approaches currently used in palliative care
• Learn more about advanced health care directives, frequently asked questions, and available resources
• Learn strategies for conducting family meetings and communicating palliative care as an option
• Understand the psychological and spiritual aspects of palliative care

• Learn more about ethical principles to distinguish the roles of parents, children, and families within pediatric palliative care
• Define how the principles of autonomy, beneficence, and justice guide decision making in pediatric palliative care
• Differentiate between life-sustaining, life-prolonging, and non-beneficial treatment
• Gain a deeper understanding of shared decision making in situations such as withholding or withdrawing treatment or providing life-sustaining treatment
• Explore religious, cultural, and ethical dilemmas in relation to advance care planning discussions
• Learn to facilitate effective, open conversations, and to offer education to prevent or ease some of the inevitable ethical issues related to family and staff

• Learn key strategies for developing effective teams in healthcare and the characteristics of high-functioning teams
• Understand the fundamental strategies for building a pediatric palliative care (PPC) team
• Gain awareness of common barriers to effective PPC team outcomes, including communication breakdowns, insufficient time, geographic complaints, hierarchical organizational structure, and muddled team member roles
• Explore key team building tactics and learn the importance of vulnerability and authenticity in developing trust

• Review components, models, and prevalence of palliative care across the continuum, including community-based (outpatient) and inpatient palliative care services
• Explore research on the impact of palliative care on patients and families, and on utilization and costs
• Understand key concepts that inform the business case for types of palliative care services in varied settings
• Review analytic approaches used to develop fiscal outcomes for palliative care
• Develop ROI estimates that account for staffing costs, expected revenues, and avoided costs
• Obtain tools for developing a comprehensive case for palliative care that addresses the goals of improving outcomes, improving care delivery, and reducing costs

• Apply a whole-person model of care using principles of integrative medicine
• Use motivational interviewing techniques to support behavioral change
• Describe how eating behaviors and lifestyle dynamics impact health
• Differentiate nutritional screening from nutritional assessment
• Identify the underlying dynamics of food-drug interactions
• Understand how nutrition affects common symptoms of serious illness
• Define the role of the gut-brain axis in mental health issues
• List the basic principles of the MEND protocol to treat cognitive decline

• Define a palliative care approach to supportive nutrition
• Understand the link between nutrition and mental health
• Use the Food Story tool to get a holistic understanding of nourishment
• Recognize the role of cultural and spiritual traditions in nutrition
• Describe the impact of food quality and the key principles of a healthy diet
• Identify common nutritional myths
• Use evidence-based principles to promote optimal nutrition

• Differentiate palliative care from hospice care
• Identify the role of each member of the palliative care team and the benefits of interdisciplinary care
• Describe unique elements of the palliative care delivery process
• Recognize the value of palliative care in specific care settings
• Conduct an advance care planning conversation
• Assess and identify patients who would benefit from palliative care

• Gain an in-depth understanding of the best ways to use POLST
• Explore clinical, ethical, and legal considerations
• Build confidence in using POLST and answering patient questions clearly
• Distinguish between DNR, PIC, MOLST, and how POLST works with Advance Healthcare Directives (AHCD)
• Understand who can complete the form and who must sign off
• Describe how healthcare providers in any state can properly document patient wishes

• Learn about palliative care theories and principles
• Understand the principles and practice of advance care planning
• Get an overview of therapeutic approaches currently used in palliative care
• Learn more about advanced health care directives, frequently asked questions, and available resources
• Learn strategies for conducting family meetings and communicating palliative care as an option
• Understand the psychological and spiritual aspects of palliative care

• Master the technology required for a telemedicine visit
• Help the team/organization and patient/family prepare for a telemedicine visit
• Establish rapport and communicate compassionate presence in a virtual medium
• Apply observational skills and other methods to conduct a telemedicine examination
• Effectively document the telemedicine visit
• Follow billing, regulatory, and compliance requirements that impact the use of telemedicine

• 4 continuing education (CE) credits approved by the California State University San Marcos and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).
• The Doctors Company is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical educational activities for physicians.

• Physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, or any clinician likely to conduct patient or family visits via telemedicine.

• Understand the essentials of palliative care
• Explore communication -- the heart and soul of palliative care
• Identify and apply concepts of working with diversity through inclusivity
• Understand spiritual and existential dimensions of palliative care
• Recognize ways that palliative care teams can support patients and families as they cope with their experiences of loss and grief
• Define and create a context for self-care in the work of palliative care teams

• Master the technology required for a telemedicine visit
• Help the team/organization and patient/family prepare for a telemedicine visit
• Establish rapport and communicate compassionate presence in a virtual medium
• Apply observational skills and other methods to conduct a telemedicine examination
• Effectively document the telemedicine visit
• Follow billing, regulatory, and compliance requirements that impact the use of telemedicine

• 4 continuing education (CE) credits approved by the California State University San Marcos and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).
• The Doctors Company is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical educational activities for physicians.

• Physicians, nurses, social workers, chaplains, or any clinician likely to conduct patient or family visits via telemedicine.

• Understand the essentials of palliative care
• Explore communication -- the heart and soul of palliative care
• Identify and apply concepts of working with diversity through inclusivity
• Understand spiritual and existential dimensions of palliative care
• Recognize ways that palliative care teams can support patients and families as they cope with their experiences of loss and grief
• Define and create a context for self-care in the work of palliative care teams

• Understand spiritual care interventions and outcomes
• Explore the chaplain’s role on the palliative care team
• Identify and apply spiritual care assessment models
• Understand the behavioral sciences that inform the practice of palliative care chaplaincy
• Teach and model resilience to clinicians
• Demonstrate leadership skills that support the organization’s spiritual health

• Gain a deeper understanding of whole-person palliative care nursing
• Build skills in pain management, including opioid considerations and side effects
• Understand palliative nursing care for cardiac, pulmonary, liver, renal, cancer, psychiatric disorders, and frailty
• Apply knowledge of disease trajectories by articulating their symptoms, using assessment tools, recommending treatments, and understanding hospice criteria
• Assess psychological side effects of serious illness, and use interventions to help the seriously and terminally ill

• Explore the role of the palliative care social worker and how the social worker’s core principles align with palliative care
• Learn how to use assessment tools across interconnected dimensions of a person’s life
• Use self-awareness and mindfulness to engage with and support patients and families
• Understand the role of social workers as leaders and advocates

• Explore foundational aspects of palliative nursing, including the role of the APRN, clinical strategies, communication fundamentals, and interdisciplinary team functions
• Understand serious and chronic illness care from a holistic, patient-centered perspective, incorporating aspects of physical, psychosocial, and spiritual care, along with complementary therapies
• Identify pharmacological, non-pharmacological, and integrative therapies for managing pain and other symptoms of serious illness
• Examine palliative care ethical issues and perspectives
• Master leadership skills for advanced practice nurses, including relationship and team building

• This series of self-paced courses, which can also be purchased individually, delivers evidence-based strategies for supporting young patients with serious illnesses and their families. Topics covered include:
• Introduction to Pediatric Palliative Care
• Communication Skills for Pediatric Patients and Family Support – Basic/Foundational/Advanced
• Pediatric Pain and Symptom Assessment and Management – Basic/Foundational/Advanced
• Concepts in Easing Suffering and Promoting Healing in Pediatric Patients – Basic/Foundational/Advanced
• Pediatric Care Delivery – Basic/Foundational/Advanced
• Pediatric Team Support
• Pediatric Ethical Principles and Challenges

• Gain a deeper understanding of whole-person palliative care nursing
• Build skills in pain management, including opioid considerations and side effects
• Understand palliative nursing care for cardiac, pulmonary, liver, renal, cancer, psychiatric disorders, and frailty
• Apply knowledge of disease trajectories by articulating their symptoms, using assessment tools, recommending treatments, and understanding hospice criteria
• Assess psychological side effects of serious illness, and use interventions to help the seriously and terminally ill

Completely revised and updated!

• Updated content to reflect state-of-the-art clinical practice and regulatory updates from CMS
• Expanded clinical tools, resources, and practical takeaways in downloadable “toolkit”
• Expanded/new content on communication strategies in the context of serious illness: advance care planning, goals of care; palliative care ethics; moral distress, compassion fatigue, and burnout; personal and organizational well-being; diversity, equity, and inclusion; telemedicine; disenfranchised and complicated grief, ambiguous loss, grief assessment
• New optional “live” sessions by Zoom with instructor, fellow students for Q&A, discussion, and feedback
• Additional Discussion Forum prompts, case studies, and topics to enrich student interaction and peer-to-peer learning; refreshed quiz and final exam questions to reinforce concepts

Palliative Care Education for Nurses

Proven to Help Participants Earn Certification

• Acquire effective skills to communicate with seriously ill patients, caregivers, and colleagues; conduct advance care planning; elicit goals of care
• Understand clinical presentations, disease trajectories, and prognostic indicators of advanced illness
• Explore evidence-based pain assessment and care planning that considers sensory, cognitive, behavioral, social, cultural, and spiritual components of pain
• Identify and evaluate pharmacological and nonpharmacological treatment approaches to manage symptoms
• Understand ethical considerations in palliative care and the application of ethics to support patient and provider decision making
• Consider and sensitively address cultural differences and the needs of diverse populations

• Differentiate among “usual” care, palliative care, and hospice care
• Identify the role of each member of the palliative care team and the benefits of interdisciplinary care
• Describe unique elements of the palliative care delivery process
• Recognize the value of palliative care in specific care settings
• Conduct an advance care planning conversation
• Assess and identify patients who would benefit from palliative care

• Differentiate among “usual” care, palliative care, and hospice care
• Identify the role nurses play on the palliative care team and the benefits of interdisciplinary care
• Describe unique elements of the palliative care delivery process
• Recognize the value of palliative care in specific care settings
• Conduct an advance care planning conversation
• Assess and identify patients who would benefit from palliative care

• Employ self-evaluation and self-awareness about the effects of personal loss to ensure appropriate and effective support to those who are suffering
• Explore ways to reconcile differences of opinion within families and the impact on grief
• Complete a family assessment to determine whether family members have unique needs that require additional support
• Identify and apply strategies to support patient and family empowerment

• Explore decision-making tools appropriate for children, teens, and young adults
• Master strategies to help in sharing serious news with a seriously ill child, teen, or young adult and their family
• Recognize when families are engaged in a “conspiracy of silence”
• Apply effective techniques for communicating with complex, challenging, and complicated families
• Manage conflict and utilize creative strategies to encourage open expression

• Explore the medical complexities of children with rare/complex diagnoses and their utilization of medical technology
• Understand how advances in medical technology have changed the standard of care and clinical course for conditions previously considered “incompatible with life”
• List key clinical features of select complex conditions that are frequently seen in pediatric hospice and palliative care
• Learn about the common pre- and perinatal experiences families often have in coping with a child with congenital conditions
• Explore resources for families to seek medical treatment and support when coping with a rare illness
• Develop common language to use with families when communicating how symptom management, medical decision-making, and psychosocial stressors are similar across a range of rare pediatric diseases

• Explore advanced pain management principles and how they apply in the care of a child who is medically complex
• Assess and treat pain and other symptoms in neurologically complex patients
• Recognize and respond to psychosocial and spiritual distress that exacerbates physical symptoms
• Understand trauma-informed pain and symptom management
• Describe key principles of providing proportionate sedation for refractory symptoms

• Explore foundational aspects of palliative nursing, including the role of the APRN, clinical strategies, communication fundamentals, and interdisciplinary team functions
• Understand serious and chronic illness care from a holistic, patient-centered perspective, incorporating aspects of physical, psychosocial, and spiritual care, along with complementary therapies
• Identify pharmacological, non-pharmacological, and integrative therapies for managing pain and other symptoms of serious illness
• Examine palliative care ethical issues and perspectives
• Master leadership skills for advanced practice nurses, including relationship and team building

• Explore the differences in the use of medical devices in children versus adults in palliative and hospice care
• Understand the importance of respecting parental preferences for device management
• Differentiate the most common types of feeding tubes in children and distinguish the care issues involved with each type
• Understand frequent concerns related to the care of common respiratory devices used in children
• Identify issues related to various medical devices at end of life
• Formulate a medical device care plan with the family

• Gain an overview of the normal growth and developmental milestones in infants, children, and adolescents
• Understand common childhood illnesses and learn how to assess symptoms
• Learn more about pain management medications, appropriate dosing and administration
• Explore non-pharmacological approaches to pain management

• Understand how prognostication impacts the patient’s access to healthcare along the primary care, palliative care, and hospice continuum
• Explore the history, philosophy, and requirements for hospice and other end-of-life treatment preferences
• Learn more about assessing and managing symptoms of advanced illness
• Delineate the signs and symptoms of impending death
• Apply the essentials of ethical principles common to end-of-life scenarios

• Integrate advance care planning into your primary care practice
• Apply evidence-based techniques for conducting difficult conversations and utilize legally binding forms to aid in documentation
• Explain the difference between hospice and palliative care and the benefits of each
• Explore strategies for reducing barriers to effective communication
• Use motivational interviewing techniques to inform decision making
• Determine and apply appropriate communication models for sharing serious news

• Differentiate between capacity and competency
• Elicit and validate goals of care with patients and families
• Discuss treatment options with seriously ill patients that align with goals of care
• Overcome barriers to decision making
• Utilize the essential elements of decision making for palliative care team-based communication

• Define culture and the importance of culture in palliative care
• Differentiate between cultural competence, cultural humility, and radical respect
• Provide insights on bias, and how to create a values-neutral practice
• Discuss issues facing members of veterans and the LGBTQ+ community who are seriously ill

• Gain in-depth understanding of the differences between pediatric palliative versus hospice care
• Learn the most common categories of pediatric diagnoses seen in pediatric hospice and palliative care patients
• Compare and contrast differences in how medical devices are used in children versus adults
• Understand the sources of care and support that families with seriously ill children might receive for care coordination.

• Assess patient and family current and historical experience with diagnosis and treatment
• Conduct an effective pediatric assessment
• Learn more about pediatric medication management
• Assess and treat pain and common symptoms
• Explore non-pharmacological treatments
• Gain in-depth understanding of caring for the child who is medically complex

• Learn the process for integrating advance care planning into a medical practice
• Understand the documentation requirements needed to bill for advance care planning under Medicare
• Discover how to develop an education plan specific to both clinical and office staff
• Execute a plan to make advance care planning a routine part of your work

• Articulate your business case for palliative care, patients to be served, and key interventions to offer
• Identify key members of the practice team to include in service delivery
• Outline and implement steps for billing, measuring care, and quality improvement