Medicine is a demanding career.  For those who choose to pursue it, their days are not their own.  The patient always comes first.  That makes working in palliative care particularly challenging.  Palliative care physicians, nurses and chaplains see patients when they are most vulnerable, suffering from serious illnesses and in need of hope and a way to ease the pain.  It is our responsibility to bring comfort – in more ways than one – to these patients and their loved ones.

After my more than 20 years in this arena, I can tell you this.  In the challenging field of palliative care, our team at NorthShore University HealthSystem is up to the test.  Now this has been confirmed by the Joint Commission.  Our program at Evanston Hospital recently became just the second program in Illinois and only the sixteenth program in the country to receive Advanced Certification.  As more patients and their families recognize the value of palliative care and more providers begin to offer it, I salute my teammates for being some of the best in the field. 

Today I would like to turn the tables.  My team is always thinking of their patients.  But today I think of my team and ask you to do the same.  No one deserves this recognition more than they do.

Sincerely,

Michael Marschke, MD

Director of Hospice and Palliative Care, NorthShore University HealthSystem