Hospice Core Roles & Responsibilities-Webinar Slides

Webinar Slides

Pdf Summary

The document outlines a webinar led by Dr. Ira R. Byock on March 18, 2025, focusing on the roles and responsibilities of physicians in hospice care. It seeks to illuminate the purpose and challenges within hospice care, highlighting historical perspectives from key figures like Dame Cicely Saunders, who underscore society's attitudes toward death and dying. The document emphasizes the complexity, expense, and variability of the U.S. healthcare system, noting that profit motives can negatively impact access and quality. It outlines concerns about the inconsistencies in hospice care quality, aiming to serve as a resource for physicians negotiating employment agreements and to aid advocacy groups in improving hospice standards.<br /><br />The text—evident through its references to previous works such as those by Dr. John Hinton and Saunders—seems to urge reconsideration of the often neglected needs of the dying. There is a call to better cater to the chronically ill, and address high costs and low care quality prominently.<br /><br />Additionally, there is emphasis on practical advice for patients and families navigating hospice care. Prompt questions are suggested to ensure thorough understanding and preparedness when selecting a hospice program, including inquiries about program ownership, patient-to-nurse ratios, physician availability, and crisis management plans. The importance of asking these questions is tied to ensuring effective hospice care and the well-being of both patients and their families during end-of-life care, with recommendations to inquire about after-care support services such as bereavement support.

Keywords

webinar

hospice care

physicians

Dr. Ira R. Byock

Dame Cicely Saunders

U.S. healthcare system

employment agreements

advocacy groups

end-of-life care

bereavement support