Thousands of American health care providers are unprepared to provide quality end-of-life care to their patients, write the editors of Scientific American in this month’s Science Agenda column. The editors argue that every medical student should be more extensively trained—and evaluated on—the skills needed to help patients navigate life’s final stages.
Modern medicine has enabled doctors to prolong people’s lives, but little of their medical training focuses on guiding patients through crucial decisions, such as whether or not to continue chemotherapy or other treatments with painful side effects. Only 6,500 physicians are certified to provide hospice care, the editors write, which is between 6,000 to 18,000 fewer than we need to support an aging population. Moreover, only 2 percent of the board exam focuses on end-of-life care in the case of oncologists, for whom it is clearly relevant.
The editors argue that a wide range of health care providers, from specialists to physician assistants, should be trained in this kind of medicine, and compensated by government and private insurers for the extra time they spend providing this care. Before receiving a license to practice, all healthcare providers should have to demonstrate their competence in this area. Studies suggest that quality end-of-life care can both improve patient survival and save hospitals billions of dollars, in part by avoiding unwanted procedures.
Link: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/doctors-are-poorly-trained-in-...