YOU ASK THE SENIOR QUESTION WE FIND THE SAVVY ANSWER

Dear Savvy Senior

I remember watching my mother battle cancer nearly 30 years ago, and still recall the suffering she endured when medical care was a bit more primitive. My father is still alive but he now has lung cancer and is on chemotherapy. He is doing pretty well but is very sick and uncomfortable and needs some help. I’ve been hearing about an option called “palliative care,” but don’t really understand it. Is this something that might help him, and if so, will his Medi-care cover it?

Palliative Paul,

Dear Paul,

It sounds like your dad is a good candidate for palliative care. Thanks to modern medicine, Ameri-cans are living longer with chronic and advanced illness than ever before, which can be both good and bad depending on who you ask. The problem is that chronic illnesses, like heart disease, diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer’s, can bring great physical and psychological pain. Palliative care can help provide some solutions.

Palliative Care

Palliative care is specialized treatment that focuses on relieving the pain and suffering that often comes with serious illness. Often mistaken for “end-of-life” hospice care, palliative care is a service that provides help to patients at any stage of their illness and life. It is also designed to support any other treatments a patient receives by helping them live comfortably throughout their illness. Specifically, palliative care:

• Vigorously treats pain and symptoms such as nausea, fatigue, depression and anxiety throughout illness.

• Helps keep patients as comfortable and active as possible so they can pursue meaningful daily activities.

• Develops a plan for the care a patients want to receive, and ensures that the medical team coordinates to provide that care.

• Counsels patients and family members when they are faced with difficult medial decisions or need emotional support.

Treating Pain

As strange as this may sound, most medical schools do not adequately train doctors in pain management. In fact, studies suggest that untreated pain is common. A study of 9,000 hospitalized, severely ill adults found that half of the conscious patients who died in the hospital experienced moderate to severe pain during their last 72 hours of life. Palliative care programs specialize in treating the pain and suffering without leaving patients in doped stupors or addicted to pain killers.

Palliative Care Programs

Palliative care is more than just a pain management program. It encompasses all aspects of a pa-tient physical, psychological, social and spiritual needs. Palliative care is typically provided by a team that includes physicians, nurses, social workers, massage therapists and clergy, and works closely with a patient’s primary doctor to ensure a complete, well-coordinated treatment.

More and more hospitals are starting palliative care programs around the country. Five years ago there were just a handful of palliative care programs in existence, but today there are nearly 1,000 hospitals nationwide that offer palliative care services. To find a palliative care program in your area, see the Center to Advance Palliative Care directory at www.capc.org.

Medicare Coverage: Depending on the services and circumstances, palliative care may or may not be covered by Medicare. You’ll need to talk to your doctor and check with your local Medicare carrier. Many private insurance plans do cover palliative care.

Savvy Resources

• The Center to Advance Palliative Care: A nonprofit organization that provides palliative care infor-mation for patients and families. Visit www.- capc.org.

• American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine: Provides information and publications on hospice and palliative care medicine. Visit www.-aahpm.org.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit www.savvysenior.org. Jim Miller is a regular contributor to the NBC Today Show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.