March 2021 | Issue 2 | Page 5
Forging the Future of Palliative Care Summit Experiences from Attendees
What made you sign up for the Summit ? I signed up for the conference in efforts to get to know more information and gain better knowledge in how to treat my patients more effectively , as well as to improve my own skill set .
What 2-3 presentations / workshops / discussions did you like the most and why ? Ronit Elk , PhD : The Critical Role of Understanding and Respecting Culture in Palliative and End of Life Care : Our African American Patient and Innovations in Community-Based Palliative Care Deborah Ejem , PhD : Exploring the Role of Religion and Spirituality in Provider-Patient Communication . I enjoyed both sessions as it provided a spirituality perspective that is crucial to patient care . How one believes is an integral part of treating the whole patient and as providers if this is missed the opportunity to connect is lost .
What was your experience like in the cultural training workshop and did it impact your clinical practice in any way ? The cultural training was
Shawnta Pittman- Hobbs MD , FAAHPM
awesome ! The intellectual dialogue was informative and eye opening . I Medical Director - Quotes from Summit Attendees Supportive and Palliative Care , Baylor All-Saints Medical Center Fort Worth liked best that it was engaging and allowed for interaction as opposed to just hearing a lecture . No part was challenging beyond the fact of making the acknowledgment to be open minded and allow yourself to be vulnerable . The experience has been beneficial in that the first question I
now typically ask … is “ what gives you strength ” and do an exploration of how faith and spirituality play a role in a particular patient prior to discussion of health and what they understand regarding the diagnosis .
Quotes from Summit Attendees “ S e v e n m e m b e r s o f o u r p a l l i a t i v e c a r e c o m m u n i t y p a r t i c i p a t e d – a c r o s s b o t h c l i n i c a l a n d r e s e a r c h s t a f f – a n d s i n c e t h e s e s s i o n e n d e d , o u r g r o u p h a s b e e n c o m m u n i c a t i n g v i a e m a i l t o d i s c u s s w a y s f o r u s t o c o n t i n u e t h e s e i m p a c t f u l c o n v e r s a t i o n s a t o u r i n s t i t u t i o n . ”