Inpatient palliative care consultation: enhancing quality of care for surgical patients by collaboration

Hospital-based surgeons will likely encounter palliative care service colleagues more frequently, given the growth of approved fellowships and hospital palliative care programs. Surgeons may consult with palliative care colleagues to help patients and families manage pain and other symptoms, cope with the distress of acute and chronic illness, manage complex decisions at end-of-life, and negotiate through a critical illness (or combinations thereof). Inpatient palliative care consultation has been shown to improve quality of care, including quality of life and satisfaction of patients, families, and referring clinicians.