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Palliative care chaplains offer support for patients nearing the end of life. Chaplains include pastors from a variety of religious backgrounds who minister to the patients, families and staff. Chaplains seek to meet your spiritual and emotional needs by providing compassionate care.
To request a chaplain visit at our Dallas campus, please call 214.820.4835.
Child Life Specialists are available through the Palliative Care program at Baylor to provide additional support for children dealing with advanced illness and end of life issues. Child Life Specialists work to include children in hospital care plans and help them participate in legacy activities. They also offer opportunities for therapeutic play to increase their understanding and involvement with the medical situation.
The Specialists support the emotional, social and cognitive growth in the context of the family, culture and developmental stage.
The Baylor Palliative Care team can help you and your family members in your struggle to make sense out of your experience dealing with illness. Our team members have listening and basic counseling skills and, if necessary can refer you to those with more advanced counseling skills.
The support we offer is tailored to each patient and we try to respect each person’s cultural and religious beliefs. We also try to help you discover or rediscover sources of strength and coping such as religion, spirituality, hobbies or specific tasks you may hope to complete. At all times, we respect your connection to what is important in your life.
Music can often offer soothing comfort for patients nearing the end of life. Studies have shown music can favorably affect the immune system, reduce muscle tension and help relieve pain. Our music practitioner can use music to try to help the palliative care patient feel more comfortable and less stress.
Specially trained dietitians and speech language pathologists can work with palliative care patients to ease swallowing difficulties, provide nutrition evaluations and information about artificial nutrition (feeding tubes) and hydration, as needed.
Occupational therapy can benefit patients facing life-threatening illnesses by helping them live as fully as possible. Specially trained occupational therapists use traditional therapies and complementary techniques to help reduce pain and anxiety.
Complementary therapies that might be used include encouraging journaling as a way to help create a written legacy for family members, calming techniques such as deep breathing exercises, guided imagery, centering prayer, touch (biothermal) therapy and reflexology. Family members can also be trained to help the patient practice these techniques.
Social workers on the Palliative Care team help patients and their family members access resources during the hospital stay and after discharge. They also offer individual counseling, group support, assistance with the transition in places of care, help adjusting to the illness and advocacy for the patient.
To request a social worker at our Dallas campus, please call 214.820.3515.
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