Innovations in End-of-Life Care
an international journal of leaders in end-of-life care

The Department of Pain Medicine and Palliative Care
Beth Israel Medical Center
Russell K. Portenoy, MD
Chairman, Department of Pain Medicine and Palliative Care
First Avenue at 16th Street, 12 Baird Hall
New York, NY 10003

The Department of Pain Medicine and Palliative Care (DPMPC) at Beth Israel Medical Center is the first department-level palliative care program at an academic medical center in the United States. Under the leadership of Dr. Russell K. Portenoy, an internationally recognized expert in pain management and palliative care, the DPMPC has made significant strides in just two years in raising the clinical, educational and research standards in the fields of palliative care and pain medicine.

With specialized pain and symptom management services, the DPMPC's unique palliative care model is based on combining the broad range of services traditionally offered only through hospice. Three divisions supply service: the Palliative Care Division, which includes the Jacob Perlow Hospice; the Pain Division; and the Institute for Education and Research in Pain and Palliative Care. Comprehensive services include inpatient consultations, ambulatory case management, access to a newly renovated inpatient unit, and the Jacob Perlow Hospice, which provides a unique palliative care drop-in program. Additional specialized programs in fatigue, AIDS pain and symptom control, and sexual health and rehabilitation during chronic and terminal illness are offered. Institute staff have developed a clinical pathway for the imminently dying patient that is being implemented hospital-wide.

Care at DPMPC is provided by a highly skilled, interdisciplinary staff of physicians, nurses, psychologists, social workers, chaplains and other health care professionals, as well as a large corps of volunteers. A leader in innovative training programs for health care professionals and ancillary staff, DPMPC educational initiatives include a core course in palliative care, physician and nurse fellowships, national and international observerships, a weekly clinical case conference, weekly case-based teaching sessions, and a monthly research conference. The research staff conducts comprehensive evaluations of the DPMPC's clinical, educational and research initiatives. Additionally, the DPMPC is committed to disseminating its experiences and expertise to a national and international audience through the Institute's multimedia Resource Center for Pain Medicine and Palliative Care, and their website: http://www.stoppain.org.

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