palliative care

September 1, 2023

Holding hands one more time: Compassion and collaboration allow couple to spend the most precious time together

Virginia and Tommy Stevens, both 91, have been married 69 years and this was the time they needed each other the most. Compassionate problem-solving by the Palliative Care Unit and the Trauma Intensive Care Unit teams brought the loving couple together one more time.

By Jill Clendening
May 11, 2023

Study shows palliative care provided at point of oncology surgery does not improve patient outcomes

New Vanderbilt research provides evidence that the addition of palliative care services earlier in the disease process, specifically to patients having surgery for cancer, does not demonstrate benefits to the patients.

By Jill Clendening
June 21, 2022

Kristen Kerkhove aims to ease the transition home for palliative care patients

“My goal is to make sure our patients have everything they need when they leave the hospital so they can spend their time focusing on what’s important to them.”

By Nancy Humphrey
April 15, 2022

Music therapy comes to Palliative Care Unit

“Music opens many new perspectives and pathways that patients otherwise would not have.”

By Emily Stembridge
November 19, 2021

A death or serious injury of a parent can mean a scared and bewildered child. Arielle Silverman helps children understand and cope.

She has worked with children varying in age from under 2 years old to teenagers as old as 18.

By Wayne Wood
November 18, 2021

Program extends palliative care knowledge to improve patient care

A new resource at Vanderbilt is helping medical students, residents and even long-standing medical faculty to enhance their palliative care skills.

By Jill Clendening
April 29, 2021

Songs written by Palliative Care Unit caregivers reflect uncertain times and offer a reminder: “Take Good Care”

Five songs providing a snapshot of how the pandemic year felt on the patient care front lines
By Matt Batcheldor
June 4, 2020

Fleming reflects on a life of love, purpose after terminal cancer diagnosis

A month before his 49th birthday, Geoffrey Fleming, MD, had a biopsy of his liver to diagnose an unidentified metastatic disease that he already knew was “something bad.”
By Kelsey Herbers
June 4, 2020

Bereavement calls helping to aid grieving families

There has been nothing normal about the COVID-19 pandemic, and grieving the loss of a life at a time when families have been unable to gather beside a bedside to say goodbye, or to even hold a traditional funeral, has been one of the worst consequences of this health crisis’s uncharted territory.
By Jill Clendening
February 27, 2020

Vigil Volunteers seeks those with compassion to spare

Dan Kula remembers entering a patient’s room on the Palliative Care Unit at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and immediately sensing the man’s agitation, which can be a symptom for those who are terminally ill.
By Jill Clendening
January 16, 2020

Pediatric diabetes, palliative care focus of new Friends of Children’s Hospital gift

Friends of Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, a volunteer organization, recently committed $1 million over the next three years to be split between two crucial pediatric programs: diabetes and palliative care.
By Nancy Humphrey
September 12, 2019

Study shows benefit of palliative care for liver disease patients

A Vanderbilt study sheds new light on the impact of palliative care.
By Jill Clendening
June 13, 2019

Diversity of conference attendees mirrors increasing support for palliative care

More than 80 people attended a Palliative Care Conference in Nashville recently that was led by faculty members of the Palliative Care programs at VUMC and the Nashville VA Medical Center, and VUMC Center for Biomedical Ethics.
By Jill Clendening
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