In palliative care, one of our favorite tools is the maxim “Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.” We wield it frequently, sometimes indiscriminately, when faced with patients who assert that “It isn’t time for palliative care yet.” We respond by saying something like, “We will continue to hope…
Pandemic as Teacher — Forcing Clinicians to Inhabit the Experience of Serious Illness
In palliative care, one of our favorite tools is the maxim “Hope for the best, prepare for the worst.” We wield it frequently, sometimes indiscriminately, when faced with patients who assert that “It isn’t time for palliative care yet.” We respond by saying something like, “We will continue to hope…