Adult education program in palliative care for nursing facility physicians: design and pilot test.

Nursing facilities (NF) are important sites for the care of dying patients. Curricula likely to improve end-of-life care are needed for NF physicians. To this end, a model medical school palliative care curriculum was modified for experienced NF physicians.

Hospice and palliative care education in medical school: a module on the role of the physician in end-of-life care.

Background: As a part of a program to integrate comprehensive palliative care education at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, a new teaching module was incorporated into the Introduction to Clinical Practice course for freshman medical students.

Methods: The module is entitled "The Role and Responsibility of the Physician in Palliative and End-of-life Care: the Inter-disciplinary Team Approach." The teaching objectives are: 1) describe the value of palliative and end-of-life care as a professional practice; 2) delineate the barriers to physician competence in end-of-life care; 3) describe the concept of hospice and the multidisciplinary approach to the care of the terminally ill; 4) List the fundamental areas of knowledge and skills required for a physician to be an effective member of the palliative care team.

Educational program in palliative and hospice care at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Background: The objective of this enterprise was and is to develop a validatable educational program on palliative and hospice care with a multidisciplinary perspective for the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Methods: An interdisciplinary education committee consisting of experts in palliative and hospice care and an expert in educational design and evaluation was established to develop the program. Program development, which is ongoing, includes a comprehensive instructional design phase, vertical integration of the program into the medical school curriculum, and outcome evaluation.