Palliative Care
Nationwide Children’s Hospital offers Palliative Care Services to children and families either in the hospital or in their homes with the goal of helping patients achieve the best possible quality of life.
We are a team of experts that provides your family with support, counseling, and world-class care. The team is purposely an add-on service, in addition to your child’s current health care team, to ensure that your child receives the necessary care and comfort when faced with a life–threatening and/or life-limiting condition.
Our team consists of physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers and chaplains to provide both palliative and hospice care depending upon the needs of the patients and families.
What is Palliative Care?
Palliative care is the medical specialty that provides medical, psychosocial, and spiritual support to patients with life-threatening conditions and their families. Palliative care is designed to work alongside your primary medical team and specialists to assist in understanding and choosing medications, surgeries and therapies with the hope of cure or extending the length of a child’s life.
We seek to ensure that patients and families feels knowledgeable about treatments being offered and that the treatment plan chosen accurately reflects the concerns and needs of the patient and his or her family. This may include helping with pain control or other symptoms, providing spiritual support during a difficult day, or it may mean openly discussing what the benefits and burdens of a therapy include so that a patient and family feels maximally educated and supported when making a decision.
What is Hospice?
Hospice is a medical specialty that provides symptom management, emotional support, and spiritual support to patients receiving end of life care and their families. Palliative Care is NOT Hospice Care.
We know the two terms can be confusing. Pediatric palliative care can begin at any time – from diagnosis, through treatment and beyond. Our care can be delivered alongside curative treatments. Although prognosis can sometimes be uncertain, our teams are available to help guide and support your family through the journey, no matter the outcome. Every child is unique, and we make every effort to ensure that his or her care reflects the individualized care your family deserves.
Learn more about our Hospice Care Program.
Where Do We Offer Services?
We offer services in your home as well as inpatient services when your child is hospitalized.
For more information regarding home-based services, please click here.
If you seek information regarding our hospital-based services, please click here.
For information regarding perinatal palliative care services, please click here.
Who Do We Serve?
We serve patients facing life-threatening conditions and their families who seek extra support in symptom management, emotional support, and if needed, end of life care. We support patients with congenital heart disease, multiple complex health care issues, cystic fibrosis, cancer, intractable epilepsy, and many more illnesses that impact a child’s quality of life and may also shorten a child’s life.
If you feel that our services may help your child and family and yet, are uncertain if a referral to palliative care is appropriate, please do not hesitate to call and speak to an expert at (614) 722-3710.
Meet Our Leadership
Lisa M. Humphrey
Lisa M. Humphrey, MD, is the Director of Hospice and Palliative Medicine at Nationwide Children's Hospital.
Inside Palliative Care
Savannah Strong
Savannah's story started when she was 17.
Her family ended up at Nationwide Children’s Hospital after an ER visit, and Savannah was soon diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma of the liver.