There has been an increasing need in the medical field for more palliative care physicians. This is because of the shortage of such physicians in the medical workforce. Yet there is an increase in the number of patients suffering terminal illnesses.
Need for More Palliative Care Physicians
The World Health Organization is calling on medical schools to introduce palliative care classes in their curriculum. This way, all med students will be informed on what palliative care is all about. And more of them will decide to specialize in this field of medicine.
Statistics
From the different research and data that has been collected, it has been discovered that most med students do not want to go this way.
They do not want to take palliative care as a course. And they do not want to specialize in it. The electronic International Medical Education in Palliative Care (IMEP-e) is what was used to collect the data.
The reason most students do not want to specialize in this field of medicine is that they do not really understand what it is all about. Most students only know the myths of this area of medicine.
Students feel like if they specialize in this field they will not explore their full potential as physicians. Because they will only be taking care of those suffering from terminal illnesses.
The IMEP-e Tool
This tool relies on information on how many hours the students were trained in palliative care and the support they received during the training. It also monitors how clinics handle issues dealing with palliative care.
So in clinics they are mainly on the lookout for:
- Communication skills with patients and their families
- Multidisciplinary teams
- Pain and symptom management
Using this technology, if well interpreted, will be beneficial for the future of palliative medicine. Students will be well exposed to the field and they will understand the importance of specializing in this field. They will also learn more of what this field has to offer.
