Building the Future: Five Lessons Learned When Integrating Trainees in an Outpatient Palliative Care Clinic

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Palliative Care
• Healthcare Delivery

Background:

• Palliative Care (PC) is a growing medical field.
• There is an increasing focus on outpatient services within PC.
• Outpatient settings offer unique training opportunities for PC.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present five effective strategies for optimizing training in outpatient Palliative Care.
• To enhance the educational experiences for trainees in diverse healthcare disciplines.
• To support the expansion of Palliative Care services in non-inpatient settings.

Main Methods:

• The study outlines five distinct strategies for outpatient PC training.
• These strategies are designed for implementation by Palliative Care educators.
• The methods focus on practical approaches to improve trainee education.

Main Results:

• The proposed strategies aim to create fulfilling outpatient PC training experiences.
• Implementation of these strategies can enhance the quality of care provided.
• The strategies are applicable to a wide range of trainees, including medical students and nurse practitioners.

Conclusions:

• Optimizing outpatient Palliative Care training is crucial for workforce development.
• Effective educational strategies can improve patient access to PC services.
• This work provides a framework for enhancing PC education in ambulatory settings.