‘Need more focus on palliative care in medical education’

Stating that palliative care (care for the terminally ill and their families) is more than just the treatment given to persons in need of end-of-life-care, a doctor from the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital said that students must be taught more than just a chapter on palliative care.

While Palliative Medicine is a speciality for those pursuing their Doctor of Medicine (MD), it will not serve to benefit those who do not do their MD, claimed doctors. 

“Not everyone does an MD in Palliative Medicine and ensuring that all students who have done their MBBS are aware of what this form of care is essential. During my MBBS days, we had one chapter called ‘Palliative and End-of-Life Care’,” said Arun S who completed his course a year ago. 

“The chapter provided us with details pertaining to the burden of deaths due to Palliative Medicine, the kind of care to be provided and the importance of communication,” he added. The doctor said that they learnt about the goals of care which had changed from cure to palliation and the steps involved in establishing the goals. “But, beyond just learning the points theoretically, we did not delve into Palliative Care and its requirements much,” said Arun. 

While there also needs to be an upgrade of palliative care as a super specialty, the focus should be on the necessity to add a scientific component to palliative care, experts said. 

“There is a need to look at all aspects of healthcare. The major concerns related to palliative care at present are with regard to how to effectively the doctor can communicate to the people about the care needed and how to coordinate with various providers of healthcare facilities. Doctors should be taught how to treat a patient when no medication works,” said Priya M, who works with an organisation that focuses on palliative care.