FIT/Early Career Section Page: Primary Palliative Care Education in Advanced HF and Transplantation Cardiology Fellowships
The ability to provide patient-centered, supportive care from the diagnosis of heart failure (HF) to the end of life is essential, and the current palliative care training paradigm for advanced HF and transplant cardiology Fellows in Training (FITs) must be enhanced to achieve this goal, according to an FIT and Early Career Page published Jan. 25 in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Sarah Chuzi, MD, discuss the limitations of the current paradigm of palliative care training and offer suggestions for improving this model. They note that the landscape of HF care is rapidly evolving, and the next generation of HF trainees must be well equipped to meet the needs of these patients. In a response to the column, Sarah J. Goodlin, MD, notes that this paper by Chuzi and colleagues "is an important step toward a cardiovascular work force capable of best meeting the needs of our patients and their families." She adds, "Integration of palliative care training into these fellowships will create experts who bring comprehensive HF care to the entire cardiovascular team, and to internists and family physicians who care for persons with HF."