Course Details:
Launch Date: August 5, 2025
Expires: August 31, 2027
Course #1079
12 Credits/Hours
Course Overview
This comprehensive course provides healthcare professionals, caregivers, and students with essential knowledge and skills for delivering compassionate, evidence-based end of life care. The curriculum addresses the physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual dimensions of care for individuals approaching the end of life, while supporting their families and loved ones through this profound transition. Participants will explore best practices in symptom management, communication strategies, ethical considerations, and interdisciplinary collaboration to ensure dignity and quality of life during the final stages of illness.
Table of Contents
- Foundations of Palliative and End of Life Care
- Pain and Symptom Management in Terminal Illness
- Communication and Decision-Making at the End of Life
- Psychosocial and Spiritual Care for Patients and Families
- Ethical and Legal Considerations in End of Life Care
- Grief, Bereavement, and Self-Care for Healthcare Providers
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Define palliative care and hospice care, and distinguish between curative and comfort-focused treatment approaches
- Assess and manage common physical symptoms experienced by patients at the end of life, including pain, dyspnea, nausea, and delirium
- Demonstrate effective communication techniques for discussing prognosis, goals of care, and advance care planning with patients and families
- Recognize and address the psychosocial, cultural, and spiritual needs of dying patients and their support systems
- Apply ethical principles and legal frameworks to complex end of life scenarios, including advance directives and withdrawal of life-sustaining treatments
- Identify signs of anticipatory grief and complicated bereavement, and implement appropriate support interventions
- Develop personal strategies for managing compassion fatigue and maintaining professional resilience in end of life care settings
