Rotations and Curriculum

Facilities

Mercy Health – St. Vincent Medical Center

St. Vincent is home to four Life Flight air ambulances, holds the highest designation for treating high risk mothers and babies, Comprehensive Stroke Center and is a Level I Trauma Center for adults and Level II for children. 

Located on the St. Vincent campus are orthopedics, Mercy Health Regional Heart and Vascular Institute, Mercy Health Neuroscience Institute and the area’s only Mobile Stroke Unit. St. Vincent provides a modern, attractive and secure campus and takes a leadership role in providing quality medical education and community development.

Fellows spend five months in Palliative Care Unit/Acute Care consults. ACGME Requirements:

• Fellows must see at least 100 new patients over the course of the program
• Fellows must follow 10 patients longitudinally across settings
• Fellows must have one month or 100 hours of long term care experience

Mercy Health – St. Vincent Medical Center has a full panoply of palliative care and related specialist faculty to provide one-on-one and progressive supervision. The Mercy Health Simulation Center provides state-of-the-art simulation educational experiences, including simulation scenarios dedicated to palliative care and end-of-life decisions.

Hospice of Northwest Ohio

Hospice of Northwest Ohio is the largest hospice and palliative care provider in the region. All faculty are certified in hospice and palliative care medicine, providing fellow supervision 24/7. The Hospice of Northwest Ohio experience provides rich variety and volumes of training in the care of those experiencing the last six months of life. The site also provides direct access to home care, pain and symptom control, palliative care, bereavement and emotional/spiritual support training as well as experience in administering a hospice medical program/practice.

Fellows spend two months in Hospice Inpatient Acute Care, one month in Hospice Home Care. ACGME Requirements: 

• Same as listed for St. Vincent Medical Center, in addition to 25 Hospice home visits (Fellow must perform at least 25 hospice home visits through a Medicare-certified program to include peds).

Orchard Villa Skilled Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Facility

Orchard Villa Skilled Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Facility will provide long-term care experience and will be longitudinally incorporated into the program, comprising at least the equivalent of one month of total experience. 

ACMGE Requirements attained during this rotation are the same as listed for St. Vincent Medical Center. This experience will provide the fellow the unique experiences needed to become competent in the transition necessary for the palliative care and hospice patients between acute care hospitals and home.

Mercy Health – St. Anne Outpatient Palliative Care Clinic

This will be Wednesday mornings.  This clinic helps chronically ill patients maintain a high quality of life at home. The clinic sees patients who may need to discuss their goals of care and require medications or techniques that relieve symptoms. They can also see a chaplain, social worker, dietitian or pharmacist if needed.

Rotation Schedule

Our curriculum focus includes the clinical and theoretical aspects of hospice and palliative medicine in both inpatient and outpatient settings. Fellows will complete eight months of required training, including:

• Inpatient acute care
• Inpatient hospice
• Hospice home care
• Palliative care continuity clinic
• Pediatric experience
• Long-term care
• Electives

The intent of the program is to individualize training within the framework of the ACGME guidelines to optimize each fellow’s ability to achieve excellence in hospice and palliative medicine. Fellows will attend the annual AAHPM assembly and an annual local palliative care conference.

• Oncology
• Pain Management
• Cardiology
• Pulmonary and Critical Care
• Pediatrics
• Geriatrics
• Neurology
• Infectious Disease