When death precedes birth: experience of a palliative care team on a labor and delivery unit.

Background: With increasing recognition and availability of palliative care, interdisciplinary palliative care teams continue to discover novel opportunities to enhance patient-centered care and improve hospital staff satisfaction. As a new palliative care consultation service in a large urban academic tertiary care setting, we found unanticipated palliative care needs on the labor and delivery unit. Women experiencing sudden intrauterine death, and the health care providers who care for them, have unique palliative care needs.

Development and evaluation of an international, interdisciplinary palliative care workshop in Botswana.

Aim: This paper reports the development and evaluation of an interdisciplinary, international palliative care workshop presented in Gaborone, Botswana.

Method: A 5-day workshop was held in June 2009 at the University of Botswana. Clinicians, faculty, and students from throughout Botswana were invited to attend at no cost.