Rao Doctor

APRIL 3, 2025

In my previous article I covered the types of illness and the causes. One of the primary tools used in diagnosing fever is the thermometer, an instrument that measures body temperature. F (38°C) is generally regarded as indicative of illness. Fever is a common indication that the body is fighting off infection.

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Diagnosis Management Illness Diagnose 130

GeriPal

JANUARY 18, 2024

Eric: And Alex, we’re going to be talking about substance use disorder and serious illness and aging, with three amazing experts. Summary Transcript Summary The CDC’s Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain excludes those undergoing cancer treatment, palliative care, and end-of-life care. This is Eric Widera.

Illness 136

Illness Patient-Centered Screening Clinic 136

GeriPal

APRIL 14, 2022

On today’s podcast we talk with three experts on buprenorphine on why, when, and how to use it in serious illness. Adapting Palliative Care Skills to Provide Substance Use Disorder Treatment to Patients With Serious Illness . Katie, before we jump into the topic of buprenorphine in serious illness, what’s the song request?

Illness 102

Illness Patient-Centered IT Patients 102

Plum Health

OCTOBER 11, 2024

Have you ever found yourself in need of medical attention but overwhelmed by the myriad of clinics and healthcare options out there? Navigating the healthcare system can be daunting, especially when you're unwell or caring for someone who is. These services go beyond treating illnesses; they aim to keep you healthy in the first place.

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Clinic Primary Care Doctor Primary Care Chronic Condition 52

GeriPal

AUGUST 31, 2023

Summary Transcript Summary How do people react when they hear they have a serious illness? And some people, in addition or instead, engage in deep introspection on how to make meaning or live with or understand this experience of serious illness. Shock, “like a car is rushing straight at me” (says Bill Gardner on our podcast).

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Illness IT Diagnose Medical 128

GeriPal

SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

Coming off as rote and scripted during a serious illness conversation can have a similar off-putting impact on patients and families. In robotics, the Uncanny Valley is that strange almost-human-but-not-quite territory in which humanoid appearing robots repulse us with their close yet still “off” appearance. Key message: Listen to the music.

Illness 101

Illness IT Patient-Centered Patients 101

GeriPal

JUNE 13, 2024

Summary Transcript Summary I always find cachexia in serious illness puzzling. In today’s podcast, we had the opportunity to learn from a renowned expert in palliative care, Eduardo Bruera, about cachexia and anorexia in serious illness. ABIM MOC credit will be offered to subscribers in November, 2024. Eduardo 00:57 Thanks.

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Illness Patient-Centered Patients IT 133

GeriPal

MARCH 24, 2023

For others, this piece, while painful to read, gave voice to what they have been feeling over the last decade – hospice has in some ways lost its way in a quest of promoting profit over care. If you are interested in signing the position statement “Core Roles and Responsibilities of Physicians in Hospice Care”, click here. Is it you, Ira?

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IT Provider Patients Families 114

GeriPal

JULY 21, 2022

Love to talk about also in the serious illness population. Because I don’t think we think about that so much in palliative care, but we do in geriatrics. But I believe before we start, somebody has a song request for Alex. Is it you, Emmy? Emmy: It is. Eric: What’s the song? Alex: Pink Cadillac by Bruce Springsteen?

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Families IT Family Diagnosis 102

GeriPal

JUNE 15, 2023

Hallucinations, or when the AI lies or b *s, then denies it When the AI approaches sentience, is it ethical to unplug it? I’m sure this is a subject we will return to, given the rapid progress on AI. But then it asked me, “Oh, that sounds really interesting. Who are you going to be talking to?” ” And I said, “Sure.”

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IT Patient-Centered Patients Healthcare 99

GeriPal

JANUARY 30, 2025

Summary Transcript CME Summary It is a battle royale on this weeks GeriPal podcast. In one corner, weighing in at decades of experience, well known for heavy hits of bedside assessments, strong patient-family relationships, and a knockout punch of interdisciplinary collaboration, we have in-person palliative care consults. But watch out!

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Telehealth Patient-Centered IT Patients 105

GeriPal

FEBRUARY 22, 2024

As she said, when you think about the hardest patients you’ve cared for, in nearly all cases there was some aspect of psychological illness involved. Today we talk with two psychologists who are deeply invested in addressing psychological aspects of care for people living with serious illness. That rings true to me. Eric: Oh, wow.

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Mental Health Patient-Centered Illness Screening 122

GeriPal

JUNE 9, 2022

We can’t possibly meet the needs of all people with newly diagnosed serious illness. She’s also a member of the PAIR Center, which stands for Palliative Advanced Illness Research Center. How do we move from efficacy (works in highly controlled settings) from effectiveness (works in real world settings? Kate: I surely do.

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Consulting Patient-Centered Diagnosis Referral 99

GeriPal

JUNE 19, 2025

Eric 01:04 So we’re going to be talking about transgender health in older adults and those with serious illness. Eric and I remember him from that time and he’s now at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where he is associate professor in the department of social and behavioral health. Jace, welcome to the GeriPal Podcast.

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Individual Community IT Chronic Condition 82

GeriPal

JULY 28, 2022

GeriPal post on “fast food” style palliative care in chronic critical illness. Jennifer’s study is most widely known for the “kicker” – not only did it improve quality of life, palliative care was associated with a couple months longer survival. . Additional links: Editorial on Areej’s study. Palliative care in lung and GI cancers.

Illness 110

Illness Hospital Patient-Centered Patients 110

GeriPal

FEBRUARY 23, 2023

Today we talk with Anne Rohlfing, Lynn Flint, and Anne Kelly, authors of a JGIM article on the reasons we shouldn’t stop at “no.” We owe it to the patient to explore the reasons behind the “no,” commonly not wanting to be a burden to their family. And I’m worried that there may come a time when you have trouble making decisions for yourself.

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Families Family Patient-Centered IT 98

GeriPal

SEPTEMBER 1, 2022

Social workers augment a team’s ability to provide whole-person care, often aiding to identify and meaningfully address the wide variety of challenges and unmet needs faced by individuals and families facing serious illness. But are we really taking full advantage of ALL social workers have to offer our field? by: Anne Kelly, LCSW, APHSW-C.

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IT Families Family Clinic 102

GeriPal

MAY 9, 2024

all of whom focus their efforts on educating the general public about living and dying with a serious illness. Summary Transcript Summary On today’s podcast, we’ve invited four hospice and palliative care social media influencers (yes, that’s a thing!), He was also the one who we have to thank for suggesting this podcast! Great title.

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Education IT Illness Healthcare 127

GeriPal

JANUARY 11, 2024

To be eligible in Canada patients must have a “ grievous and irremediable ” condition, including disability ; they do not have to have a terminal illness with a prognosis of less than 6 months. A planned expansion of MAID to include people with mental illness was placed on hold until March 2024. Four percent. It was amazing.

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Illness IT Medical Provider 144

GeriPal

FEBRUARY 27, 2025

Today we talk with experts Janet Ho, Sach Kale, and Julie Childers about opioid use disorder and serious illness. Eric 00:51 So we’re gonna be talking about caring for people with serious illness and substance abuse. Who has a song request for Alex before we talk about substance use disorder and serious illness?

Patients 73

Patients Clinic Patient-Centered Illness 73

GeriPal

FEBRUARY 6, 2025

So, the question becomes, what, if anything, should we do differently in the primary care setting to diagnose the disease? We address the following questions with Nate: Has anything changed for the primary care doctor when diagnosing Alzheimers? How should we screen for cognitive impairment? Does a good history matter anymore?

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Primary Care Diagnosis Screening IT 96

GeriPal

OCTOBER 20, 2022

It’s Lona Mody who is a translational infectious disease researcher at the University of Michigan and VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System. The recent focus on nursing facilities and long term supportive services during the pandemic, along with key gaps. How to make your voice heard and get involved. Eric: Welcome to the GeriPal podcast.

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Complication Patient-Centered IT Patients 52

GeriPal

APRIL 4, 2024

She was resuscitated by EMS, but did not regain higher brain function, and was eventually diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state. In 1988, Cruzan’s parents requested that her feeding tube be removed, arguing that she would not want to continue in this state. In 1990 the Supreme Court ruled…for the state of Missouri.

Families 112

Families Family Patient-Centered IT 112

GeriPal

APRIL 13, 2023

Summary Transcript Summary Social connections impact our health in profound ways, whether it is the support we receive from family and friends in navigating serious illness, the joy from shared social activities, or connecting with our community. Welcome back, Ashwin. Ashwin Kotwal: Excited to be back. Eric: Now, it’s interesting.

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IT Community Patient-Centered Medical 99

GeriPal

AUGUST 25, 2022

And yet, disenrollment from hospice, either due to patient/family revoking the benefit or stabilization of illness (extended prognosis) is remarkably high for people with dementia among some hospices. In fact, as Lauren Hunt found , the average likelihood that a person will be disenrolled from one hospice vs. another is two. Yes, it is.

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Families Family IT Patients 106

GeriPal

MARCH 7, 2024

He looked very ill. We are doulas for those with serious illness and those at end-of-life, just a longitudinal relationship, nonmedical support to provide presence. But before we jump into that topic, John, do you have the song request for Alex? John: I do. It’s Jimmy Buffett’s song, Bubbles Up. It was on his last album.

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Provider Illness IT Healthcare 117

GeriPal

FEBRUARY 16, 2023

The last time this happened to me I immediately went on the defensive despite years of training in serious illness communication skills. Summary Transcript Summary Think about the last time a patient yelled at you in anger. How did you react? Afterwards, I thought there must be a better way. Transcript Eric: Welcome to the GeriPal podcast.

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Patients IT Families Family 109

GeriPal

FEBRUARY 2, 2024

And PAIR stands for the Palliative and Advanced Illness Research Center. First, in our editorial, we expressed concern about the length of stay metric not being patient centric, though important for health systems focused on cost savings. It was refreshing to hear Scott and Kate express similar sentiments. Much more to come.

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Consulting Hospital Patient-Centered IT 121

GeriPal

AUGUST 24, 2023

Fox gives patients hope there may be a place that illness doesn’t touch Depression is a Liar Why is Being a Patient Such a Difficult Pill to Swallow Better Patient Care Calls for a ‘Platinum Rule’ to Replace the Golden One. We talk with Harvey about how he defines “dignity” and how we can understand what it means to our patients.

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Patient-Centered Patients IT Illness 98

GeriPal

SEPTEMBER 21, 2023

Eric: And somebody told me you’re a professional tambourine player. Summary Transcript Summary The proportion of people living with dementia who identify as Black/African Americans is on the rise , and so too are the proportion of caregivers who identify as Black/African American. African American? Black/African American? Karen: I do.

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Community Families Family IT 128

GeriPal

FEBRUARY 9, 2023

For example, we spend the first half talking about a RCT simulation study of clinician verbal and non-verbal communication with a seriously ill patient with cancer. A health services researcher and palliative care physician, Amber lauds the ability of simulation studies to isolate one variable in a study. Amber: I do. You know what?

Patient-Centered 111

Patient-Centered Patients IT Healthcare 111

GeriPal

OCTOBER 3, 2024

I’ll have a more professional version on the audio- only versuib. Some highlights from our conversation: The role of art in humanizing the dying process. The rules are really quite simple: Find another person. Sit down and draw each other for only one minute. We invite you to post your drawings on twitter and tag us @GeriPalBlog!

IT 122

IT Patient-Centered Patients Relationship 122

GeriPal

AUGUST 8, 2024

Alex 00:17 So who came up with this name? Eric 00:19 Miguel Paniagua. We heard from him that he was going to do an ACP session on between two earns, including a funeral director or mortician, to talk about it in a play on B etween T wo F erns. Alex 00:35 Yep. And I gave it this title, talking about how we can get plenty more of everything but time.

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IT Families Family Relationship 124

GeriPal

OCTOBER 27, 2022

Eric: 1982. James: … alive in the 1980s, but yes, you sang Forever Young by Bob Dylan around three years ago, and then Eric jokingly started singing this song, and so now it’s about time to fulfill Eric’s request. Alex Smith: Sei, do you have any comment? It was kind of the junior high party. Alex Smith: (Singing). Eric: Yeah.

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IT Clinic Screening Patients 95

GeriPal

SEPTEMBER 19, 2024

Summary Transcript CME Summary If palliative care was a drug, one question we would want to know before prescribing it is what dose we should give. Give too little – it may not work. But before we jump into that topic, Jennifer, do you have a song request for Alex? Jennifer 01:20 I do have a song request for Alex. Saw them play a couple times.

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Patient-Centered IT Patients Hospital 119

GeriPal

JUNE 26, 2025

-Alex Smith Additional links mentioned by Tsai-Chin Cho: – Wealth shocks and mortality in the US – Change in marital status as a risk for wealth shock ** NOTE: To claim CME credit for this episode, click here ** Transcript Eric 00:11 W elcome to the GeriPal p odcast. This is Eric Widera. Alex 00:12 This is Alex Smith. Is it you, Rebecca?

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Illness Hospital IT Patient-Centered 73

GeriPal

JUNE 6, 2024

Eric 01:13 So we got a lot to cover today on sexuality, sexual health and serious illness. So we got a lot to cover on sexuality, sexual health, and serious illness. I’m happy to talk about it at any time.” All guests agree that clinicians feel they need to have something they can do if they open Pandora’s box. Ra ra ra ra.

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Illness IT Physicals Patients 130