Palliative Care

Living with a serious illness and navigating the healthcare system can be overwhelming. Palliative care brings together a team of physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers and chaplains focused on communicating wishes and coordinating care amongst multiple specialties. Whether you're facing a new diagnosis, living with a chronic illness or coping with the advanced stages of a progressive condition, our UnityPoint Health palliative care team will help you determine the best course of treatment based on your goals and wishes.

What is Palliative Care?

The palliative care definition involves a supportive, medical approach that focuses on providing relief from a range of symptoms and stress caused by a serious illness. Symptoms palliative care can help manage include:

• Pain
• Fatigue
• Anxiety and depression
• Shortness of breath
• Constipation or diarrhea 
• Nausea and vomiting
• Loss of appetite
• Sleep disturbances

It’s designed to improve a patient’s quality of life and encourages open dialogue between the patient and their care team and the desired course of treatment for the patient’s illness.

When Should Someone Consider Palliative Care?

Palliative care should be considered for people who have chronic illnesses, including:

• COPD
• Heart failure
  
• Parkinson’s disease
• Dementia
• Liver disease
• Kidney disease
• Cancer
• AIDS

When patients also frequently require emergency room visits and hospitalizations, palliative care should be considered.

Palliative Care Services

Our team works closely with you and your provider to improve your comfort, independence and quality of life through all stages of your condition. Our team will also:

• Help you and your family understand your illness and treatment options
• Aim to reduce your symptoms and manage pain
• Work with you, your family and your providers to create a plan of care that meets your needs and goals
• Assist you with advance care planning
• Communicate your care plan to other medical staff as you move through different healthcare settings

Your provider can make a referral to a palliative care team near you and provide them with your care needs and goals to help get you relief, faster. 

Palliative Care vs Hospice Care

Palliative and hospice care are very similar in that they both use a multidisciplinary team to focus on quality of life and comfort for a patient. However, not all palliative care is hospice care, but all hospice care is palliative. Palliative care focuses on improving the quality of life for patients dealing with a serious illness by alleviating their symptoms, managing pain and holistically addressing physical, emotional and spiritual needs. It can be started at any stage of the illness, even as soon as a diagnosis is received. Individuals receiving palliative care may also continue receiving curative treatment.

Hospice care, on the other hand, is a specific type of palliative care provided to those nearing end of their life. Like palliative care, hospice also manages physical, emotional and spiritual symptoms. The difference between palliative care and hospice care here is that the goal shifts from curative to comfort from hospice care, with curative or aggressive treatments like chemotherapy being discontinued.

Palliative Care Hospital Departments

We offer palliative care services at many locations, including within some of our hospitals. Please check your location's hours and appointment requirements to learn more.