Lessons From the Development and Implementation of a Palliative Care Elective for Fourth-Year Medical Students: A Pilot Study.

Background: Although palliative care is recognized as an important component of medical school curricula, the content and structure of education in the field is variable and often lacks outpatient exposure. We aimed to develop and implement a palliative care clinical elective for fourth-year medical students incorporating both inpatient and outpatient learning.

Methods: Fourteen medical students participated in a palliative care elective which included 2 weeks on an inpatient consult service and 1 week of outpatient clinic and home hospice visits.

Cancer-related pain management in clinical oncology.

Uncontrolled pain is one of the most feared and debilitating symptoms among cancer patients, and many suffer unnecessarily from suboptimal pain control. Cancer-related pain is often multidimensional and can affect all aspects of a patient's life. Hence, achieving adequate pain relief among cancer patients involves a proper assessment of psychosocial, spiritual, and physical pain issues, matched with an individualized treatment plan involving pharmacologic, nonpharmacologic, and procedural therapies when appropriate.