What I Learned From Off-the-Charts Pain By Jennifer Moore Ballentine

A week after my first chemo infusion for breast cancer, I woke up feeling like I’d been beaten with sticks. By mid-morning, my temperature was 103◦ and I headed to the ER. By the time I was admitted with neutropenic fever, I was discovering the true meaning of the phrase “My head is about to explode.”

The pain was unbelievable. I couldn’t think, I couldn’t see, I could barely hear what seemed like a parade of disembodied voices offering this or that remedy, all of which had exactly zero effect on the pain.

The morphine had an effect—but not the desired one. The only thing that helped at all, the only thing that got me through the next 48 hours, was a CD player, headphones, and the neoclassical dark wave group Dead Can Dance on continuous replay. [Read more…]

Managing Pain in Advanced Illness Takes Personalized Approach, Expert Says ‘Revolution’ in Pain Management is Whole Person, Patient-Centered Care, Not an Overdependence on Opioids

By Melanie Marshall

Managing pain in people with advanced illnesses requires a whole person approach, not just a prescription, said Jeffrey Sears, DO, Director of Pain Management at Hackley Hospital Pain Management Center, in Muskegon, Mich.

Sears said pain management is a fundamental skill needed in every practice, but many clinicians don’t feel confident managing chronic or acute pain. The ongoing opioid epidemic has contributed to that uneasiness, he said.

Building clinical skills, knowledge, and confidence in pain management is crucial. Untreated pain can ruin a patient’s quality of life and overwhelm them, their loved ones, and caregivers, said Sears, who is board certified by the American Academy of Pain Management. [Read more…]

Recognizing and Expanding the Impact of Palliative Care Social Work  As Field Advances and Certification Grows, Social Workers Must Step Into Their Role as Leaders, Expert Says

By Larry Beresford

Hospice and palliative care social workers who want to advance their field must recognize their value, demonstrate their strengths, and assert themselves as leaders on the interdisciplinary team, says Gary Gardia, Executive Director of the Advanced Palliative and Hospice Social Worker Certification (APHSW-C) program.

Gardia, LCSW, APHSW-C, said self-doubt, healthcare system hierarchies, and daily challenges of the job can cloud the way social workers see themselves, as well as how they’re perceived by colleagues. Deepening key skills and becoming certified sends a powerful message that elevates the entire field. [Read more…]

Comforting the Grieving During COVID-19 Crisis At Height of New York City’s Coronavirus Outbreak, Bereavement Calls Took on New Importance for Families

By Larry Beresford

When New York City became the epicenter of the United States’ COVID-19 infections this spring, Rabbi Edith Meyerson DMin, BCC, of Mount Sinai Health System found herself facing a nearly insurmountable challenge: Attending to the grieving.

As Associate Director of Pastoral Counseling and Bereavement Services at Lilian and Benjamin Hertzberg Palliative Care Institute at Mount Sinai’s Icahn School of Medicine, Meyerson and her team typically support patients and families on the health system’s renowned palliative care service.

[Read more…]