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Palliative Medicine

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Palliative medicine is about improving quality of life for you or your loved one.

Palliative care, also known as palliative medicine, is specialized medical care focused on the symptoms and stress of a serious illness. The goal is to improve quality of life. Providing expert support for serious illness in coordination with your curative treatment.

Palliative medicine supports you by easing pain and symptoms while you undergo treatment. As you heal, find remission, or meet your care goals, you may no longer need palliative medicine.

We’re your partner as you navigate complex healthcare situations, coordinating with your doctors to support your current treatment plan, and helping you manage pain and symptoms to improve quality of life for you and your loved ones.

Patients can receive palliative care in their homes, assisted living facilities, hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, Telehealth, and various outpatient clinics including Lower Cape Fear LifeCare’s Center for Palliative Medicine in Wilmington, NC – the first free-standing palliative medicine clinic in southeastern  North Carolina.

Palliative medicine nurse practitioners or physician’s assistants consult with patients as needed to access care needs and provide pain and symptom management. Support may be available to patients and families who need the assistance of a medical social worker.

We’ve served patients who have diseases such as:

  • Heart disease
  • Diabetes
  • COPD
  • Dementia
  • Cancer
A palliative care fast facts half-circle bar graph showing only 5% shaded in. Among patients admitted to the hospital, fewer than 5% are seen by a palliative care team, and less than half of all individuals who die in the United States receive hospice care.
Palliative Medicine Fast Facts: Underutilized but Essential

Source: NIH

What is palliative medicine?

Palliative medicine is a specialty medical service designed for patients who are faced with a serious illness. Palliative specialists focus on managing symptoms and stress associated with serious illness. Goals of care are discussed and established in partnership with patients, their primary care providers, and other team members. The goals of palliative medicine are to relieve pain, symptoms and stress associated with a patient’s serious illness to improve quality of life.

A graphic listing the benefits of palliative care services. Palliative care can relieve pain, symptoms, and stress; assist with discussions about goals of care; reduce hospitalizations and shorten hospital stays; provide information and support on advanced care planning; and help, support, and improve coordination of care.

Our expert palliative medicine providers work closely with your existing doctors to control disease symptoms such as:

  • Pain
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Breathing difficulties
  • Fatigue
  • Confusion
  • Depression

If you have any questions, we’ll be happy to assist you. Please contact us to speak with a member of our health care team to see if you qualify for our palliative medicine program.

Please complete our “Contact Us About…” form and select “Palliative Care” for more information on how we can help you or your loved one. Don’t wait.

What is the difference between hospice and palliative care?

  • Palliative medicine is about improving the quality of life for patients and their families. Patients of any age may receive palliative care at any stage in their diagnosis.

Be together. Let us take care of the rest.

If you have any questions, we’ll be happy to assist you. Please contact us to speak with a member of our health care team to see if you qualify for our palliative care program.

Please complete our form for more information on how we can help you or your loved one. Don’t wait.

Physician making house call

Quality Counts

New Hanover Regional Medical Center, Novant Health Brunswick Medical Center, and Columbus Regional Healthcare System choose Lower Cape Fear LifeCare to provide palliative care to their patients.

Don’t Wait

Only 10% of our patients take advantage of the full Medicare hospice benefit which includes ALL medical care, medications, equipment and visits related to diagnosis.

To find out if you or someone you love qualifies for hospice, call 800.733.1476 or fill out the below form:

Palliative Care: Everything You Need To Know

Qualifying

What You’ll Learn

Palliative care can significantly improve quality of life for people living with serious illnesses. Taking our Which Care is Right Quiz may help you determine if this type of care is right for you or your loved one. You can also call us at 800-733-1476 and we’ll provide all the necessary information to assist you and your loved ones in determining if palliative care is the right care to help you feel better while undergoing treatment for your illness.

Serious Illness—
not Terminal

What You’ll Learn

In addition to pain and symptom management, palliative care provides an extra layer of support for those undergoing treatment for a serious illness. Families find that the coordination of care across providers and the volume of information about their illness and prognosis palliative care offers is invaluable in navigating healthcare options while undergoing treatment.

Veterans

What You’ll Learn

We hold immense respect for those who have served our country. We know that many veterans developed serious illnesses in connection with their time of service. Discover how our comprehensive healthcare team works together to manage the symptoms and stresses of your illness to improve quality of life.

SPEAK TO SOMEONE NOW

800.733.1476

OUR MISSION:

Lower Cape Fear LifeCare is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing access to the highest quality LifeCare, education, and supportive services to our patients, their families, and the communities we serve.

ACHC

United Way

On January 1, 2020, Lower Cape Fear Hospice formally changed its name to Lower Cape Fear LifeCare to better represent the spectrum of care and support they provide those in our community.