Didactics

Core Curriculum

Boot camp didactics (July) followed by structured weekly didactics and clinical learning topics (covered across different settings).

Topics are not limited to the following:

  • Pain Curriculum: Pathophysiology and approach to acute and chronic pain. Cancer pain syndromes. Opioids management including use of Fentanyl, Methadone, Ketamine, etc. Patient controlled analgesia, Interventional pain procedures, etc.
  • Agitation & Delirium.
  • Evidence-based Management of Palliative Symptoms: Nausea, vomiting, malignant bowel obstruction, anorexia and cachexia, frailty, fatigue, dyspnea, respiratory secretions, pruritis, etc.
  • Communication Curriculum: Family Meetings; breaking bad news; goals care; advance care planning; communication in ICU settings, transition of care and care coordination, etc.
  • Performing Inpatient palliative care consultations.
  • Palliative care in Advanced Illness: Heart failure, ESRD, topics in malignant diseases, etc.
  • Neurodegenerative Illnesses: Dementia, Parkinson, Multiple Sclerosis, ALS, Anoxic Brain Injury, etc.
  • Prognostication
  • Care Transitions.
  • Spiritual Assessment
  • Psychologic and psychiatric illness: Anxiety, depression, PTSD, adjustment disorder, grief, etc.
  • Bereavement.
  • Resilience and self-care.
  • Hospice Curriculum: including hospice eligibility, regulations,
  • End of Life Care.
  • Withdrawal of life sustaining treatment: Artificial nutrition, hydration, compassionate extubation from ventilator.
  • Palliative Care Emergencies.
  • Palliative Sedation.
  • Addiction Medicine Curriculum

Journal Club: (September to June)

Workshops: Jump Training on Advance Care Planning with simulated patients; communication workshops- Pallitalk; ethics conferences, etc.

National Conference(s) AAHPM, CAPC, etc.

Elective Courses: Curriculum in Pediatric palliative care; narrative medicine, etc.

Interdisciplinary Team Meetings: IDT management of difficult situations

Internal Medicine Grand Rounds, and other lectures.

Quality and Safety University syllabus.

Telemedicine practice and procedures

Educational Opportunities: Fellows are facilitated to educate medical students and residents on service and participate in lectures for other services.

Contact Us

Jenny Doerr
Program Coordinator
[email protected]
309-624-5893

Tayyaba Irshad, MD, MPH
Program Director
[email protected]
309-624-7761

Fax: 309-624-4611