COVID-19 and the Role of Surgical Palliative Care

#006 - Recorded on March 20, 2020. Join host Dr. Red Hoffman, cohost Dr. Mac Cook and guest Dr. Katie O'Connell (acute care surgeon and director of surgical palliative care at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, WA) as they discuss the Covid-19 pandemic and the various roles that surgical palliative care may play throughout this public health crisis. They compare notes on the responses of their various institutions and commiserate about the shared sense of anxiety, boredom and identity distress that many surgeons throughout the country are currently feeling. They also talk about the importance of making sure that all of patients have updated advance directives, the use of telemedicine at end of life, ethical dilemmas in the time of resource scarcity and various resources (listed below) that may help all surgeons deliver primary palliative care to our patients. Thanks to Mac and Katie for a thoughtful, honest discussion and for the reminder that we all have an important role to play during this difficult time.
Resources discussed in this episode:
Elective Surgery Acuity Scale by Dr Sameer Siddiiqui at St. Louis University.
Covid-Ready Communication Skills published by Vital Talk- an invaluable resource to help guide your conversations with patients and families.
Covid-19 Response Resources provided by Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC). Beyond communication tips, CAPC is providing- free of charge- symptom management protocols so that all surgeons are armed with the tools needed to provide excellent primary palliative care to our patients.
Ventilator Allocation Guidelines provided by NY State Task Force on Life and Law and NY State Department of Health. These guidelines provide an excellent introduction to the ethical considerations necessary when resources are limited.
Rationing Life Saving Treatments in the Setting of COVID Pandemics: A Podcast with Doug White and James Frank by GeriPal Podcast. This discussion of public health ethics manages to be both very nuanced and very understandable. Well worth a listen.
Surviving Sepsis Campaign: Guidelines on the Management of Critically Ill Adults with Coronavirus Disease 2019 published on Friday, March 20, 2020 by the Society of Critical Care Medicine.
To learn more about the surgical palliative care community, visit us on twitter @surgpallcare