Primary palliative care : an asynchronous online course design

Palliative care is an active, holistic approach aimed at improving the quality of life for patients experiencing serious health-related suffering, as well as their families and caregivers. While often misconceived as only end-of-life care delivered in specialized settings, palliative care exists at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. Primary palliative care integrates palliative principles into generalist healthcare practice, addressing patients’ basic palliative needs in primary care clinics, general hospital units, long-term care facilities and home settings. Despite its critical role in chronic disease management, many primary care providers lack sufficient training in the early recognition of palliative care needs, inadvertently delaying timely interventions. Patients who receive palliative care late in their illness are more likely to experience uncontrolled symptoms, have increased reliance on acute care services, undergo aggressive medical interventions and die in hospital. This project examined the need for primary palliative care education, the optimal structure and content of a primary care provider-specific continuing education course, and its potential for large-scale individual and societal impacts. A four-module, asynchronous online course outline was developed based on conceptual frameworks, evidence-based literature and clinical guidelines from British Columbia’s leading palliative care experts. A future implementation strategy was outlined, utilizing the University of British Columbia’s Continuing Professional Development platform. By equipping primary care providers with essential palliative competencies, this project aimed to foster a proactive approach to serious illness care, ultimately reducing healthcare system strain and improving patient outcomes.