senior woman holding up hand for nurse

Kadlec's palliative care program is called Advanced Illness Management Service (AIMS). We strive to help patients with symptom management, end-of-life conversations and other difficult situations. We work with patients and their families to determine their goals and create individualized plans.

Palliative care is different from hospice. At some point, patients from our program may move into hospice, but palliative care comes earlier. AIMS provides treatment for the stress and symptoms of serious illnesses. We help patients with pain management, breathing difficulties and nausea. Our goal is to prevent and ease suffering while improving quality of life.

In addition to dedicated physicians, AIMS provides a fulltime case manager. We recently expanded to provide service for patients at Kadlec Clinic - Hematology and Oncology.

Patients who can benefit from palliative care through our AIMS program may have the following conditions:

  • Advanced heart disease such as chronic heart failure
  • Advanced pulmonary disease, including Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
  • Advanced cancer
  • Advanced renal disease
  • Neurological disorders such as advanced dementia or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Prior stroke
  • Other serious illnesses