by Dr. Jon Hallberg, Minnesota Public Radio

May 16, 2012

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ST. PAUL, Minn. Palliative care is an approved medical subspecialty that's present in 85 percent of larger hospitals. But a new survey in the Journal of Palliative Medicine shows that many patients and health care professionals are still confused about the concept. Many even confuse palliative care with euthanasia.

MPR's medical analyst Dr. Jon Hallberg discussed the concept of palliative care with Tom Crann of All Things Considered on Wednesday. Hallberg is a physician in family medicine at the University of Minnesota and medical director of the Mill City Clinic.

An edited transcript of that discussion is below.

Crann: What is palliative care?

Hallberg: The World Health Organization puts it this way, it says that palliative care is an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families when they're facing problems associated with life-threatening illnesses.

Crann: What sort of treatments are we talking about?

Hallberg: I think the thing we all think about immediately is pain control...But it also might include being very short of breath, being very aware of that, and so managing that as well.

Excerpt from:

Dr. Jon Hallberg: Clearing up confusion about palliative health care