The terms “supportive care” and “palliative care” are sometimes used interchangeably. Where I work, we use the “supportive care” to include all the various programs that relate to palliative care and advance care planning.
I am a big believer of not re-inventing the wheel, so let’s first look at the definition of “palliative care” that was developed by the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC):
Palliative care (pronounced pal-lee-uh-tiv) is specialized medical care for people with serious illnesses. It focuses on providing patients with relief from the symptoms, pain, and stress of a serious illness—whatever the diagnosis. The goal is to improve quality of life for both the patient and the family.
Palliative care is provided by a team of doctors, nurses and other specialists who work together with a patient’s other doctors to provide an extra layer of support. It is appropriate at any age and at any stage in a serious illness and can be provided along with curative treatment.
Looking at that definition, here are five things to know about supportive care:
Palliative Care is Specialized Medical Care.
Just as doctors, nurses, and other health care providers have to study specific areas of care, like heart care for cardiology, for example, there are those who choose to study palliative care. There are certification processes for clinicians. Every health care provider needs to understand the basics of palliative care, just like they need to know the basics of cardiology, and there are those who are able to manage more challenging or complex problems.
Palliative Care is for Patients with Serious Illness.
This is important in what it does not say: palliative care is not just for patients who are dying. Palliative care is not the same as hospice, though they share a lot in common. Hospice is for patients at the end of life (six months or less, in general). Palliative care patients could have a long life ahead of them, or they could be near the end of life. In a very real sense, hospice is a form of palliative care for patients who are at the end stage of an illness. Anyone with a serious illness might benefit from palliative care.
Palliative Care Focuses on Providing Relief.
One of the biggest benefits of palliative care is that it focuses on making patients and families feel better. Traditionally, doctors work on the problem, whatever that may be. While that is important, sometimes it happens without much attention to pain, suffering, or impact that a serious illness can have, both on the patient and their family. Palliative care may not be able to take away all the symptoms, but they can help them be manageable.
Palliative Care Can Help No Matter What the Diagnosis.
Palliative care is not just for cancer. It is for chronic lung disease, neurologic conditions, heart disease, congenital diseases, and many others. Since the focus is on symptoms, pain, stress, etc., and those come with any illness, the diagnosis is not the determining factor. Palliative care can help.
The Goal of Palliative Care is to Improve Quality of Life.
Quality of life is a subjective term. It means different things to different people. In palliative care, the patient and family determine what is most important to them, and palliative care works to try to make that happen. Matching the care plan to the goals of care is what leads to improved quality of life.
Last Updated: November 5, 2018
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