December 2021 | Issue 5 | Page 3
The palliative care team noted a recurrent theme of health equity issues and social determinants of health , which was further brought to light by the pandemic . These themes were clearly identified in underserved communities of African Americans and the Choctaw nation . The team found transferring non-verbal cues and listening to what is not said was much more difficult in the telehealth setting . They relied heavily on the medical center Choctaw liaison , though she was dealing with her on grief as a large number of her family members and friends died during this pandemic .
Culturally sensitive communication skills and empathy were even more necessary to the work of this team during this pandemic . The UMMC palliative care team was able to use their experience with serious illness conversations in the ICU setting , formal training in HPM ( Hospice and Palliative Medicine ) and Dr . Mansel ’ s association with the Academy of Communication in Healthcare ( ACH ), of which he is a faculty member , to help colleagues with communication skills .
Brooke Carroll , NP and Campbell Sindel , MD UMMC Palliative Care
Doug Gibson , MD , the HPM fellow at the onset of the pandemic , developed an abbreviated tool and PEARLS for residents to use when communicating daily with families of the seriously ill COVID-19 patients . He developed scripts to assist in answering difficult questions . Finally , Dr . Gibson led training for those who needed to have these difficult conversations via telephone .
In the midst of the pandemic , the UMMC palliative care team was approached to develop and teach a communication workshop in the critical care tower to a small group of physicians and nurse practitioners . The palliative team developed a six-week study program ( one hour / week ) for the participants culminating in an off-site six-hour workshop with discussion of completed assignments and an opportunity to actively participate in role-play with the team using the Serious Illness Guide from Ariadne Labs . The participants were accredited 12.25 continuing medical education hours . As the pandemic dragged on , another academic year began with another fellow , Campbell Sindel , MD . Having viewed much of palliative medicine through the lens of her pulmonary critical care background , Dr . Sindel developed a post-recovery ICU clinic . Ultimately , many of her clinic patients were suffering from long COVID . Those patients benefited greatly from this clinic .
Doug Gibson , MD UMMC Palliative Care
Experiences are only as good as the lessons learned . This team believes they learned valuable lessons in better use of telehealth communication and gained an enhanced knowledge of culturally sensitive communication skills and empathy . They look forward to continuing to share these improved communication skills with their colleagues to better serve patients and families in Mississippi . Though still in the pandemic , there is now opportunity to take a glance backward , and a long look forward .