When you are facing a life-altering illness, we go beyond medical treatment with supportive palliative care

A serious chronic illness shouldn’t force you to put your life on hold. The supportive palliative care teams at Baylor Scott & White Health can help you maintain good quality of life with programs that provide medical, emotional and spiritual support for you and your family.

Supportive palliative care is a team-based medical specialty focusing on comfort, care and planning for patients facing serious illness and their families. Supportive palliative care team members help determine a care plan that meets your wants and needs, including management of pain and other symptoms, counseling and spiritual support, and other therapies.

You can continue to be treated for your illness while working with the supportive palliative care team. If hospice is needed later, your team can help with the transition.

Woman in palliative care with visiting family

Learn more about supportive palliative care

Supportive palliative care is a relatively new medical specialty concerned with helping those with chronic diseases and their families live with their conditions.

Find out more about how supportive palliative care could help you or a loved one live life Better.

Program and services

Child Life Program

Child life specialists provide support for children of seriously ill or injured adults.

Our child life specialists work with adults to help them understand questions and concerns that children have when an important person in their life is seriously ill.

They also help adults understand the behavioral changes and signs of stress in their children.

Learn more about the Child Life Program

Benefits of supportive palliative care

When you or a loved one is dealing with a serious medical condition, it can be difficult to deal with the stress caused by pain, anxiety and other factors. Studies by several healthcare organizations have shown that supportive palliative care can improve the lives of patients and their families by helping them deal with the physical and emotional stress of a chronic medical condition.

 

Our supportive palliative teams address the medical, emotional and spiritual aspects of your illness or injury, including:

  • Managing pain, shortness of breath, nausea and other physical symptoms
  • Easing emotional pain, depression and anxiety
  • Addressing spiritual issues
  • Emotionally adjusting to illness
  • Planning for your future

Supportive palliative care consultation

Supportive palliative care consultation is available only upon request of your attending physician. If you would like a palliative care consultation at Baylor Scott & White Health, please ask your physician or nurse to contact us.

Inpatient care

Inpatient consultations are available by physician order only, although inpatients or their family members may request an informational visit from a supportive palliative care team member by calling the number listed for your hospital, Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM.


Outpatient care

Outpatient consultations are available at:

Leadership

Robert Fine, MD
Director

Dr. Fine has spent his career studying and developing supportive palliative care programs.

Learn more about Dr. Fine

Frequently asked questions