Palliative care education in pediatric cardiology fellowships: A survey of program directors

Palliative care education in pediatric cardiology fellowships: A survey of program directors
Pediatric Cardiology; by Lesje DeRose, Sarah Godfrey, Shabnam Peyvandi, Nicole M. Cresalia, Jill M. Steiner, Emily Morell; 6/25
Our survey demonstrated a wide range of PC [palliative care] educational practices among categorical pediatric cardiology fellowship programs. While most programs provided some form of PC education to their fellows, the amount and modality varied widely between programs, from very minimal PC exposure to required core PC rotations. Almost half of the participating PDs [program directors] reported dissatisfaction with the current amount of PC education in their fellowship programs. Programs such as VitalTalk (www.vitaltalk.org) and other (both in-person or virtual) modules have been utilized in other training environments with improvement in trainee comfort in PC topics, including CardioTalk for adult cardiology trainees. Didactic-based curricula in PC topics, such as mental health and ethics, have also been shown to help providers gain confidence in PC domains.