Content Objective: Palliative Care

By the end of the Family Medicine Clerkship, the medical student will be able to:

1. Explain the definition of the following terms and their application in palliative care settings and/or advanced care planning:
   1. Code status
   2. Personal care directives
   3. Substitute decision-makers
   4. Power of attorney
   5. Palliative care vs. medical assistance in dying (MAiD)
2. Propose a management plan for patients receiving palliative care with
   1. Pain
   2. Nausea
   3. Constipation
   4. Dyspnea
3. Identify local resources to support palliative patients & their families with end-of-life issues (social, psychological, cultural, emotional, spiritual and practical support)
4. Recognize and seek assistance for the following palliative emergencies: opioid neurotoxicity, spinal cord compression, seizures, acute hemorrhage, and acute confusion/delirium

Mandatory Clinical Encounter

• None

Resources*

• Emil, Palliative Care Virtual Patient, Dr. Amy Tan, UoA
• Palliative care clinical card, LearnFM
• Palliative Care for the Patient with Incurable Cancer or Advanced Disease  - Part 1: Approach to Care, BC Guidelines 2017
• Palliative Care for the Patient with Incurable Cancer or Advanced Disease  - Part 2: Pain and Symptom Management

* Where a specific resource is not listed for a particular objective, please refer to recommended general texts/websites. Resources have often been selected from the Clinical Practice Guidelines and Protocols in British Columbia and Alberta’s Towards Optimized Practice Clinical Practice Guidelines. These are often concise summaries of national guidelines.