In September, National POLST announced the release of the first National POLST form, a form guide for professionals, and two patient guides to help patients prepare for the conversation and a more detailed explanation of the form. This form represents a major step towards national consensus on the POLST form—and is the product of almost…

The Cambia Health Foundation has opened the 2020 Sojourns® Scholar Leadership Program Call for Applications and emerging palliative care leaders throughout the country, across all disciplines and practice settings, are encouraged to apply.The Sojourns Scholar Leadership Program is designed to identify, cultivate and advance the next generation of palliative care leaders. As part of the…

BJ Miller, MD, a palliative care physician and member of C-TAC’s Board of Directors, was featured on National Public Radio this week during an interview on Fresh Air with Terry Gross. Dr. Miller, who practices at the UCSF Cancer Center, suffered a major injury in college which resulted in the amputation of both of his…

When Breath Becomes Air, a moving memoir written by Paul Kalanithi, MD, during his experience with metastatic lung cancer, has been named one of the top ten best nonfiction books of the decade by Entertainment Weekly. Reporter Leah Greenblatt praised the book for its “beauty, hope, and searing honesty.” When Breath Becomes Air was a…

The images from the 1930 high school yearbook brought them all back. As we all flipped through its pages, Ramie’s grandmother regaled us with stories of her early life as if it all happened yesterday. Her uncle later queried Nana why she had never shared any of these stories with him. “Well, you never asked,”…

CMS has released a Request for Applications (RFA) for the Direct Contracting demonstration’s Professional and Global options. Organizations interested in participating must submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) for this model by December 10th, 2019. Letters of Intent can be submitted here.You do not need to resubmit an LOI if you already did so when CMS first opened up the online portal earlier this year. The…

C-TAC was thrilled to have Stratis Health and the Minnesota Network of Hospice & Palliative Care (MNHPC) as partners leading up to and during our 2019 National Summit on Advanced Illness Care. During the Summit, representatives from Stratis Health and MNHPC stood together and committed to launching a coalition in Minnesota designed to support those living with serious illness. C-TAC looks…

C-TAC is proud to count the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum (LHCQF) among our membership. A neutral convener, LHCQF connects purchasers, providers, consumers and payers with the goal of improving the quality of health and care delivery in Louisiana. LHCQF was founded after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the state’s health care delivery system along…

“What is it that caregivers don’t talk about with other people?” This was the question that Kaiser Health News columnist Judith Graham posed during a discussion that featured a panel of experienced caregivers at the Kaiser Family Foundation in Washington, DC today. The event began with a conversation between Graham and Arthur Kleinman, MD, a…

C-TAC is excited to welcome its latest intern, who will support our event planning efforts and assist us with fostering new partnerships with those who share our commitment to improving advanced illness care. Sharon graduated from the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs and also works at the George Washington University Division of…