Palliative care can also help emergency physicians, who experience greater job satisfaction when they learn to better communicate with patients and families.
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ACEP News: Vol 30 – No 05 – May 2011It is well known that patients and families are more likely to pursue litigation not when they suffer injury, but when they feel ignored or dismissed, or when communication is otherwise poor.
And no emergency physician wants to perform tests and do invasive procedures in patients for whom the risk of harm will exceed the risk of benefit.
Palliative care team presence in the ED will keep growing. The knowledge base and communication skills of emergency physicians are increasing rapidly. This is good for patients, good for families, and in the long run really good for us.
Dr. Grudzen is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine and Geriatric Palliative Medicine at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.
Dr. Bryant is an emergency medicine and palliative care physician at Exempla Saint Joseph Hospital in Denver.
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