Editorial: The importance of following the money in the development and sustainability of palliative care

The importance of following the money in the development and sustainability of palliative care


"...Second, we must be vigilant that the ever-increasing imperative for efficiency in health care is always tempered by the need for palliative care specialists to take all the time that is needed to communicate fully with patients and families. Palliative care providers may always have a lower volume of visits or encounters per day than other specialties because of the patience required to understand patients’ values and preferences and to align the goals of care to those values (as much as possible within the constraints imposed by the disease process). We cannot allow the quest for speed to trump the need for patience and wisdom."