Diane E. Meier, MD, FACP, Director, Center to Advance Palliative CareIcahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai discusses the opportunities and threats to palliative care in 2015. In moving towards global budgets and risk-bearing relationships between clinicians and payer, resulting in a rapid expansion in palliative care services outside the hospital. While the opportunity for providing palliative care continues to grow, the expectations for reducing hospitalization rates and emergency department usage create pressure which may interfere with the goal of delivering appropriate care. For Meier, the solution lies in focusing on what is best for each individual patient, regardless of whether or not it requires admission to the hospital or incurring additional costs.

Resources & References

– www.capc.org/

– www.getpalliativecare.org/whatis/