Starting in December, Kennedy Heath will launch a palliative medicine care program in collaboration with Samaritan Healthcare & Hospice.
Providers of palliative care often find themselves having to explain the difference between these services and end-of-life care.
While end-of-life care and hospice services are focused on making patients with a terminal illness comfortable in their final days, palliative care is for those being treated for a serious, non-terminal illnesses.
Starting in December, Kennedy Heath will launch a palliative medicine care program in collaboration with Samaritan Healthcare & Hospice.
The goal of the program is to help manage symptoms, relieve patient suffering and help the patient achieve their treatment goals, officials explained.
Palliative care can help patients with a variety of illnesses, including cancer, heart disease and kidney failure. This care can address issues including pain management, shortness of breath, fatigue, depression and anxiety. The program can even address social and spiritual needs.
This care can be provided in a hospital, clinic or home setting.
"The goal is to really achieve the best quality of life for the patient and the family," explained Marjorie Ivins, chief operating officer of Samaritan.
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Palliative care can actually allow patients to continue an aggressive course of treatment.
When a patient might feel the treatment is just too much to handle, palliative care can provide the support they need -- through symptom management -- to continue that treatment, explained Carol Paprocki, director of communications with Samaritan.
Kennedy decided to partner with Samaritan because of the organization's track record.
"The selection process was done based on Samaritan's past performance," said Kathy Schleider, Kennedy Health's vice president of Clinical Integration and Population Health. "All of their physicians are board certified in palliative care and I think that's really relevant."
The program will launch in Kennedy's Washington Township hospital first, followed by the Stratford and Cherry Hill facilities in January.
Palliative care programs have grown substantially in U.S. hospitals since 2000.
At the start of the century, nearly 25 percent of hospitals with more than 50 beds provided palliative care programs, according to the Center to Advance Palliative Care. As of 2013, that number had jumped to 72.3 percent.
"It's really a field that is up and coming," Schleider said, "and we really wanted to take the step forward with a very solid program."
Matt Gray may be reached at mgray@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattGraySJT. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook.
