Palliative care

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Palliative care

Palliative care is a kind of care for people who have illnesses that do not go away and often get worse with time. The goal of palliative care is to improve quality of life—not just in the body, but also in the mind and spirit.

Many people combine palliative care with other types of treatment.

Palliative care can help manage symptoms, pain, or side effects from treatment. It can help people cope with their feelings about living with a chronic illness. It may even help with planning for future health and medical care.

In the past, palliative care was mostly used to treat people receiving hospice care. Today, this kind of care can help anyone who has an illness or disease that cannot be cured. More and more health professionals are using palliative care, and many are specially trained to provide it.

Credits

Author	Jeannette Curtis
Author	Caroline Rea, RN, BS, MS
Editor	Kathleen M. Ariss, MS
Editor	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA
Associate Editor	Tracy Landauer
Associate Editor	Pat Truman
Primary Medical Reviewer	Patrice Burgess, MD - Family Medicine
Primary Medical Reviewer	Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine
Primary Medical Reviewer	Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine
Last Updated	May 25, 2007

Last updated:	May 25, 2007
Author:	Caroline Rea, RN, BS, MS
Reviewed By:	Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine
Editors:	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Pat Truman

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