Palliative Care

Palliative care is a new service at CMH which focuses on improving overall quality of life for patients and families facing serious illness. A team of professionals work with the patient's primary care doctor, providing communication, pain and symptom management and coordination of care. Palliative Care is appropriate at any point in a serious illness and can be provided at the same time as treatment that is meant to cure. There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Patients may have a range of diseases and respond differently to treatment options. A key benefit is that it looks at the patient as a whole in order to meet the individual needs of each person and their family. Symptoms can be relieved such as pain, shortness of breath, fatigue, constipation, nausea, loss of appetite and difficulty sleeping. It helps patients gain the strength to carry on with daily life and improves their ability to tolerate medical treatments.    Palliative care is not limited to hospice care; it may be provided at any time during a person's illness, even from the time of diagnosis. And, it can take place at the same time as curative treatment. Hospice always provides palliative care. but its focus is terminally ill patients-people who no longer seek treatments to cure them.