Palliative Care Blog

The Role of Palliative Care in a COVID-19 Pandemic

Palliative Care Strengths Such as Communication, Advance Care Planning, and Symptom Management, Needed Now More Than Ever

By Jennifer Moore Ballentine

In this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare systems and healthcare professionals are stressed and bracing for or already managing an influx of affected patients. The coronavirus presents a severe acute care crisis of unknown duration, in which potentially hundreds of thousands of people may get sick, some critically, and tens of thousands may die.[1]

In this context, the usual concerns of palliative care—quality of life, discernment of patient goals, advance care planning, pain and symptom management, and support for caregivers over protracted trajectories—seem pale and to pale in comparison. And yet, I would argue, palliative care has never been more important.

Those who are elderly, frail, and/or with underlying chronic or serious illness are most at risk from the novel coronavirus. These are palliative care’s core patient population. Utilizing the unique skills and strengths found in palliative care must be part of the response.

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An Interview with Lorraine Leist on the Power of Palliative Care Chaplaincy

Former Faculty Member for the CSU Shiley Institute for Palliative Care Shares Her Wisdom, Experience

Editor’s note: The Rev. Lorraine Leist, M.Div., is a palliative care chaplain at Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, Wash., and an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ, with a board certification in chaplaincy by the Association of Professional Chaplains (APC). For the past two years, Leist served as a faculty member for the CSU Shiley Institute for Palliative Care’s Essentials of Palliative Care Chaplaincy course. She is now pursing her Doctor of Divinity degree.  

Institute – Q: Why Should Chaplains Learn About Palliative Care?

Leist – A:  First, as part of the healthcare team, chaplains need to be able to understand the principles and practice of palliative care, and recognize the need for it as they interact with patients in various settings. For chaplains, learning about palliative care also means learning about chaplaincy in a team setting.

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Hospice and Palliative Care Innovator Honored With 4th Annual Doris A. Howell, MD, Award

LightBridge Hospice & Palliative Care Founder Jill Mendlen, RN, Recognized for Extraordinary Impact Work

A nurse and longtime healthcare innovator whose entrepreneurial spirit has been fueled by a passion and purpose to improve care for people with serious illness was recently honored by the California State University Shiley Institute for Palliative Care.

LightBridge Hospice & Palliative Care Founder Jill Mendlen, RN, is the recipient of the Institute’s 2019 Doris A. Howell, MD, Award for Advancing Palliative Care.

“Jill represents the best in our field: a passionate caregiver, inspiring leader, and programmatic innovator,” said the Institute’s Executive Director Jennifer Moore Ballentine. “We’re thrilled to honor her and her team with this award.”

The Institute received roughly 20 nominations in support of Mendlen, many from LightBridge employees who have worked alongside her to provide high-quality palliative and end-of-life care that has transformed quality of life for seriously ill patients and families in San Diego County.

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Interdisciplinary Teams Benefit Patients, Families and Caregivers

Interprofessional Education Helps Build Strong Palliative Care Teams

When Brian (last name withheld for privacy) was treated for cancer at the Mayo Clinic in September 2019, his palliative care team worked together to provide him not only relief from his physical pain but also emotional comfort.

That team approach – a hallmark of palliative care – not only provided an extra layer of support to Brian, but to his wife Lynn. “They really advocated on our behalf within the complex system of Brian’s treatment,” she said. 

Brian’s care team was part of an interdisciplinary team (IDT) model that typically includes a physician, a nurse, a social worker, and other healthcare professionals. His story is highlighted in a Sept. 10, 2019, Mayo Clinic Educational YouTube video, “Palliative Care for You and Your Family.”

Working as a Team

“The crux of palliative care is a team-based approach to care, really aimed at treating the physical symptoms as well as the emotional and spiritual symptoms of a serious illness,” Jacob J. Strand, MD, a palliative care physician at the Mayo Clinic, says in the video.

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