We are fully committed to providing our fellow with an excellent training experience with ample opportunities to develop clinical, educational, and research skills. The program offers a variety of clinical rotations with an innovative and comprehensive curriculum. Fellows see a wide array of patients with various diagnoses that prepare the trainee for a career in palliative medicine with an emphasis on clinical practice.
Rotations
- Inpatient palliative medicine consult service (five blocks)
- Hospice inpatient unit (two blocks)
- Home hospice (two blocks)
- Oncology/Radiation Oncology (one block)
- Pediatric palliative medicine (one block)
- Electives (two blocks)
Facilities
In addition to our beautiful, five-bed palliative unit, the fellowship is associated with three local skilled nursing facilities. Fellows also spend two half-days seeing patients in our outpatient palliative medicine clinic. Our faculty are affiliated with three separate Hospice agencies, and the fellow is assigned to a Family Hospice team to manage throughout the year, attending their interdisciplinary team one-half day per week.
Didactics
Our fellowship has an extensive didactic schedule, featuring over 140 scheduled sessions given by our faculty and numerous guest lecturers. Topics include:
- Communication
- Hospice
- Spirituality
- Self-care
- Symptom management
- OMT
- Pharmacy
- EBM
- Legal aspects of palliative medicine
- Journal club
- Pediatric palliative medicine
- Palliative grand rounds
- System-based management of various end-stage diseases
The fellow also attends the three-day “Pallitalk” palliative medicine communication course hosted by the UPMC Palliative and Supportive Institute.