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Vol. 12, May
2005
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PLEASE NOTE! A WEOLCC half-day conference is being planned for Fall 2005! A save-the-date card to follow soon! |
Steering
Committee Meet for Two-Day Retreat, Clarify and Redefine WEOLCC Vision
and Goals
This April, members of the WEOLCC steering committee spent two days
at the wonderful Frog Creek Lodge, nestled in lush Lakebay, WA, to discuss
the strengths and weaknesses of the current Coalition and to reach consensus
on its future.
With the help of a facilitator, the committee members charted a course of action for the upcoming year. In particular, three goals were decided upon:
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Reinvigorate and expand the coalition to more truly and broadly represent the diverse communities of Washington State.
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Assess current attitudes and activities regarding end of life planning in Washington state.
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Redesign our coalition to better achieve our mission
Action plans/timelines were developed and a committee assigned to implement each action plan.
The vision and mission statements of the Coalition were also reviewed and revised.
The new vision and mission statements can be viewed on the WEOLCC Web page (part of the Washington State Medical Association Web site) found at http://www.wsma.org/about_wsma/weolcc.cfm.
October
Conference on Cultural Diversity and End-of-Life Care a Success
October's diversity conference was a huge success by most measurements.
The conference attracted 331 attendees; professions represented included
RNs, MDs, MSWs, chaplains, students, PhDs, and more. Evaluations collected
at the close of the conference were overwhelmingly positive.
Some comments taken from the evaluations:
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"Diversity covered with many senses and passion. The speakers were so inspiring and informative."
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"Terry Tafoya - never learned/listened to a Native American in a context like this - great experience."
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"African American presentation and panel re presentation was wonderful. Candid, specific and well prepared."
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"Very interesting and maintained attention. Role-playing activity is effective."
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"The essence of diversity - thank you"
We strongly believe the synergy represented by the collaboration was powerful and resulted in tangible learning, which will lead to improvement in end-of-life care for our region and state. Congratulations to everyone - organizers and attendees - involved!
Revised
POLST Form Promoted Statewide
Regional Ethics Network of Eastern Washington (RENEW), with assistance
from the WSMA, this May launched a media campaign to announce the availability
of the newly revised Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment
(POLST) form, as well as a POLST training video.
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The revised POLST form was first made available in November of 2004 (improvements included adding nurse practitioners and PA-Cs to the signatory box, improving the language and graphic layout, etc.) The WEOLCC was an active participant in the form revision process. The POLST training video, "POLST: Choices at End of Life", produced by RENEW, includes a segment for general overview, and specific segments for physicians and long term care providers. The video is available through the WSMA (see following item). For more information on the new POLST form and video, visit the WSMA POLST Web pages at http://www.wsma.org/patient_resources/polst.cfm. |
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WSMA
Offers Free POLST Training
The WSMA now offers training on the use of the new Physician Orders
for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST) form - right from your office
or home computer! The POLST training video, "POLST: Choices for
End of Life," is now available for online viewing from the WSMA
Web site at http://www.wsma.org/patient_resources/polstVideo.cfm
(Windows Media Player for Windows or Macintosh is required to view the
streaming video).
Whether the person preparing the form is a physician, NP, PA-C, or a nursing home staff member preparing the form for the MD or NP to review and sign, the video is designed to help the preparer to skillfully engage patients and families about their treatment options. You can use the video for in-service trainings. It covers, section-by-section, how to complete the newest version of the POLST form.
The POLST training video is also available for purchase as a VHS video or CD-video (CD-video is playable in most computers, PC or Mac, with a CD/DVD drive). For ordering information, call Graham Short at 1.800.552.0612, or go to http://www.wsma.org/patient_resources/polstVideo.cfm.
The video was produced by the Regional Ethics Network of Eastern Washington (RENEW), with assistance from the Washington State POLST Task Force and the WSMA, with a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
More
on the UW Chronic Care Clerkship and Palliative Care Track
Coalition Chair Stu Farber and member Ross Hayes successfully led an
effort at the University of Washington to initiate a required clerkship
for 4th year medical students that includes end of life and palliative
care training. The goal of the clerkship is to recognize and critically
evaluate behaviors that allow clinicians to provide excellent palliative/hospice
care to patients and families living with chronic, life limiting illness.
A third of all medical students will receive in-depth palliative care experience through the palliative care track of the clerkship; all students will receive an overview of chronic illness and some input through didactic programs. Clinical experiences will be had in cooperation with five regional hospice programs, including Franciscan Hospice, Evergreen Hospice, Swedish Home Care Services, Providence Hospice of Snohomish County and Hospice of Seattle. The program has been made possible through an exciting public/private partnership. To find out more about the clerkship, visit their Web site at http://courses.washington.edu/conj690/; for information on the Palliative Care Track, go to http://www.fammed.washington.edu/palliativecare/, or contact Stu Farber, Director for Palliative Care Track at sfarber@u.washington.edu, or (206) 543-9425.
End
of Life Events and Resources
Pediatric Pain and Symptom Management Algorithms for Palliative Care,
1st edition
Author: Linda Wrede-Seaman, MD, FAAHPM, FAAFP FACEP
From the publishers of Symptom Management Algorithms, A Handbook
for Palliative Care. This book was done as a result of a grant through
Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA and was used as a pilot project statewide.
$29.50
For information, contact Intellicard, PO Box 8255, Yakima, WA 98908
or call (509) 965-9266.
End
of Life Steering Committee:
Stuart
Farber MD, Chair
Sharmon Figenshaw RN, Vice-Chair
Peter McGough MD
Georganne Trandum RN
Taya Briley RN
Robb Miller
Jim Shaw, MD
Alma Stanford RN
William O. Robertson MD
Jeff Mero
Senator Pat Thibaudeau
Pam Gehrig
Linda Wrede-Seaman MD
Donna Oiland
Staff: Graham Short
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For
more information regarding the Washington End of Life Consensus
Coalition, contact Graham Short at gfs@wsma.org,
or |
Washington End
of Life Consensus Coalition
2033 6th Avenue, Ste. 1100
Seattle, WA 98121
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