Health Equity

Understanding health equity as it relates to palliative care is essential to HPM practice. HPM clinicians must first understand how social determinants of health, and the structural factors that define them, manifest in disparities within palliative care, such as inconsistencies in symptom management (EPA 1, 2), higher burden of disease impacting prognosis (EPA 4), and poorer access to care (EPA 14). They must also have an understanding of their own implicit bias and be able to adapt communication skills to meet patient’s and family’s individualized cultural needs (EPA 5, 11, 12). Lastly, HPM clinicians must translate this knowledge through the lens of cultural humility into providing compassionate care for patients of different backgrounds (EPA 6) and integrate this into team-based care.