Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

When should we start having a discussion about palliative and end of life care?

Elaine M. Colby, MD
Conditions
March 28, 2020
587 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share

Many of us are learning and refreshing our knowledge of critical care and vent management, but how about acknowledging that one of the most meaningful aspects of the art of medicine is simply to bear witness to, and ease the suffering of our fellow humans?

So much energy of modern western medicine is fixated on achieving a cure, and so many of us are trained nowadays to follow an algorithm to diagnose a disease, then cure it, and anything less than that is considered a failure.  But in reality, most of the day to day “in the trenches” medicine is unclear, and we can only do the best we can with the knowledge we have at the moment.

It seems as though the looming reality for many of us is that we will have patients who need ventilators, and none will be available. It seems like we might benefit from remembering that we can still succeed in practicing medicine by being present with those suffering before us, even when we know we cannot cure them of disease.

In a more pragmatic sense, maybe in addition to logistical discussions and articles about how ERs and ICUs are going to decide who should get a ventilator, we should also discuss how we are going to communicate with empathy and compassion to the families of the critically ill and dying; there are ways to learn to do this well that alleviates heartache for families and for physicians. Those in palliative care could probably contribute greatly right now.

This doesn’t mean we should stop being angry about the lack of PPE and other government failures in preparedness.  Hopefully, we will have an effective vaccine one day, and life will return to normal, but we have tough times ahead in the near future.

Elaine M. Colby is a family physician.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

An emergency physician fighting on the frontline

March 28, 2020 Kevin 0
…
Next

I am a physician, and I am scared

March 28, 2020 Kevin 2
…

Tagged as: COVID, Infectious Disease, Palliative Care

Post navigation

< Previous Post
An emergency physician fighting on the frontline
Next Post >
I am a physician, and I am scared

Related Posts

  • A real-life example of irrational health care spending

    Taylor J. Christensen, MD
  • A letter to a cancer patient in palliative care

    Alison Vasa
  • How social media can help or hurt your health care career

    Health eCareers
  • End-of-life care talks begin at home: even for doctors

    Abdel Albakri
  • Can the dwindling numbers of primary care physicians explain decreased life expectancy?

    Niran S. Al-Agba, MD
  • Health care in American is on life support, and the future is uncharted

    Manoj Jain, MD, MPH

More in Conditions

  • COVID-19 unleashed an ongoing crisis of delirium in hospitals

    Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher, MD, Nathan Stall, MD, and Paula Rochon, MD
  • Emergency care nightmare: the urgent need for experienced nurses

    Rachel Basham, RN, CCRN
  • Debating the role of psychiatric assessments in medical decisions

    Christian Youssef & Francisco M. Torres, MD
  • 5 things to know about weight from a bariatric surgeon

    Maria Iliakova, MD
  • Physician autonomy and patient interactions in corporate health care

    Michele Luckenbaugh
  • Vague criteria can lead to misdiagnosis and prison

    L. Joseph Parker, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • The erosion of patient care

      Laura de la Torre, MD | Physician
    • I’m tired of being a distracted doctor

      Shiv Rao, MD | Tech
    • Inside the grueling life of a surgery intern

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Physician
    • How Tratak yoga reshaped my USMLE Step 2 prep

      Dr. Nikita Mehdiratta | Education
    • Family support is pivotal in the treatment of schizophrenia

      Frank Chen, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Medical gaslighting: a growing challenge in today’s medical landscape

      Tami Burdick | Conditions
    • I want to be a doctor who can provide care for women: What states must I rule out for my medical education?

      Nandini Erodula | Education
    • Balancing opioid medication in chronic pain

      L. Joseph Parker, MD | Conditions
    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • I’m a doctor, and I almost died during childbirth

      Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD | Physician
    • Mourning the silent epidemic: the physician suicide crisis and suggestions for change

      Amna Shabbir, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • How Tratak yoga reshaped my USMLE Step 2 prep

      Dr. Nikita Mehdiratta | Education
    • Transforming primary care for physician well-being [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • COVID-19 unleashed an ongoing crisis of delirium in hospitals

      Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher, MD, Nathan Stall, MD, and Paula Rochon, MD | Conditions
    • Doctors and disability insurance: Protecting your income

      Amarish Dave, DO | Finance
    • Emergency care nightmare: the urgent need for experienced nurses

      Rachel Basham, RN, CCRN | Conditions
    • Physicians have no autonomy. Here’s how to change that.

      Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH | Physician

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

CME Spotlights

From MedPage Today

Latest News

  • Report: Persistence of Gender Inequalities in Cancer Care, and a Call to Action
  • Cancer Risk in NAFLD Higher With Early Disease Onset
  • FDA Displeased With Companies Purposely Adding Sesame to More Foods
  • COVID Vax Appointment Cancelled? New Shot Rollout Faces Challenges
  • Medical Residents Receive 100+ Job Offer Contacts, Survey Shows

Meeting Coverage

  • New Schizophrenia Treatments Are Coming: Don't Panic
  • Loneliness Needs to Be Treated Like Any Other Health Condition, Researcher Suggests
  • Stopping Medical Misinformation Requires Early Detection
  • AI Has an Image Problem in Healthcare, Expert Says
  • Want Better Health Outcomes? Check Out What Other Countries Do
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • The erosion of patient care

      Laura de la Torre, MD | Physician
    • I’m tired of being a distracted doctor

      Shiv Rao, MD | Tech
    • Inside the grueling life of a surgery intern

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Physician
    • How Tratak yoga reshaped my USMLE Step 2 prep

      Dr. Nikita Mehdiratta | Education
    • Family support is pivotal in the treatment of schizophrenia

      Frank Chen, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Medical gaslighting: a growing challenge in today’s medical landscape

      Tami Burdick | Conditions
    • I want to be a doctor who can provide care for women: What states must I rule out for my medical education?

      Nandini Erodula | Education
    • Balancing opioid medication in chronic pain

      L. Joseph Parker, MD | Conditions
    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • I’m a doctor, and I almost died during childbirth

      Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD | Physician
    • Mourning the silent epidemic: the physician suicide crisis and suggestions for change

      Amna Shabbir, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • How Tratak yoga reshaped my USMLE Step 2 prep

      Dr. Nikita Mehdiratta | Education
    • Transforming primary care for physician well-being [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • COVID-19 unleashed an ongoing crisis of delirium in hospitals

      Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher, MD, Nathan Stall, MD, and Paula Rochon, MD | Conditions
    • Doctors and disability insurance: Protecting your income

      Amarish Dave, DO | Finance
    • Emergency care nightmare: the urgent need for experienced nurses

      Rachel Basham, RN, CCRN | Conditions
    • Physicians have no autonomy. Here’s how to change that.

      Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH | Physician

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...