COVINGTON – St. Tammany Health System’s Palliative Care program has been named a Top 25 finalist in the John A. Hartford Foundation’s 2021 Tipping Point Challenge, a national initiative recognizing innovation in the care of people living with serious illnesses.
The Top 25 announcement, made Monday (July 26, 2021), follows a 10-month competition sponsored by the Center to Advance Palliative Care that was open to all health systems, settings, disciplines and specialties across the United States. More than 100 organizations participated.
Submissions of innovative initiatives had to align with one of three high-impact categories of change:
- Building Skills Among Nonpalliative Care Specialties and Disciplines: Improving communication skills and/or pain and symptom management skills among all specialists treating CHF, COPD, and cancer
- Improving Systematic Access to Specialty Palliative Care
- Reaching the Patients in Need: Implementing a population health approach to identify and address patients with serious illness and unmet needs, designed to assist people living with a serious illness and unmet needs.
Winners in each area of innovation will be announced Oct. 27.
For decades, St. Tammany Health System’s Palliative Care team has worked tirelessly and compassionately to improve the quality of life for people with serious, life-limiting conditions such as chronic heart failure, dementia, cancer, lung disease and many others.
Unlike hospice care – or end-of-life care – palliative care may be provided alongside hospitalization, surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and other aggressive therapies intended to blunt the impact of the underlying condition. In the process, palliative care providers address the many stressors that can accompany serious illness, such as pain, fatigue, fear of the unknown, loss of independence, or a feeling of being overwhelmed or lost in the medical system.
Learn more at StTammany.health/Palliative.
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About St. Tammany Health System
The heartbeat of its community, St. Tammany Health System cares for patients and families with excellence, compassion and teamwork. It is recognized for quality, safety and service excellence by CareChex, Leapfrog, Healthgrades, Hospital Compare, Women’s Choice and US News & World Report. St. Tammany Parish Hospital Service District No. 1 and Ochsner Health work together in partnership to improve the community’s health and quality of life. Together, west St. Tammany’s top two independent health leaders represent the most complete system of care, aligning behind the common goals of improving access, expanding specialty care and making care affordable. Under their agreement, each retains its autonomy; neither manages nor owns the other. Self-supporting, not-for-profit STHS is A+ rated by Fitch and receives no tax funding. More at StTammany.health
About the Center to Advance Palliative Care
The Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) is a national organization dedicated to increasing the availability of quality health care for people living with a serious illness. As the nation’s leading resource in its field, CAPC provides health care professionals and organizations with the training, tools, and technical assistance necessary to effectively meet this need. CAPC is part of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. For more information, visit capc.org and tippingpointchallenge.capc.org, and follow @CAPCpalliative.
About The John A. Hartford Foundation
The John A. Hartford Foundation, based in New York City, is a private, nonpartisan, national philanthropy dedicated to improving the care of older adults. The leader in the field of aging and health, the Foundation has three priority areas: creating age-friendly health systems, supporting family caregivers, and improving serious illness and end-of-life care. For more information, visit johnahartford.org and follow @johnahartford.