Supportive and Palliative Care

Compassionate care for patients and families living with a serious or life-threatening illness. We help you manage pain and other symptoms and offer emotional, social, and spiritual support.

For all requests:

1-319-356-8133

For all other requests:: 1-800-777-8442

The Supportive and Palliative Care team gives care and support for patients and families living with serious illness, whether that illness is curable, chronic, or life threatening. The goal of palliative care is to improve the quality of life for both.

Founded in 1999, the Supportive and Palliative Care program at the University of Iowa Health Care is committed to providing compassionate care for patients and their families while receiving their treatment at UI Health Care.

The program provides care on consultative basis throughout the hospital including the intensive care units, emergency department, inpatient units, as well as in the Supportive and Palliative Care Clinic.

Our Mission: To provide compassionate care and support to patients and their families through their serious illness.

We work to:

Provide emotional, social, and spiritual support
Decrease pain and control symptoms
Alleviate fear and grief
Help coordinate and determine goals of care
Help patients and families understand what’s happening

Information for donors

Gifts to Supportive and Palliative Care provide resources for our physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses and palliative care staff to further their education in palliative medicine, and enhance the experience of our patients and families.

To make a gift to honor the memory of your loved one, Please contact Hayden Bevelacqua with the University of Iowa Center for Advancement.

Inpatient care

Our inpatient team is multidisciplinary and comprised of physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, pharmacists, social workers, chaplains, and music therapists who work together with a patient’s team of medical doctors and members of their care team to provide this extra layer of support. Palliative care is based on the needs of the patient, not on the patient’s prognosis. It is appropriate at any age and at any stage in a serious illness. And it can be provided along with curative treatment.

Inpatient services include:

Managing and treating symptoms such as pain, nausea, vomiting, and shortness of breath due to a serious illness.
Providing emotional and spiritual support.
Helping patients and their families understand and navigate their care process.
Helping in determining the goals of care and treatments that are aligned with the patient's wishes.

Outpatient care

Our outpatient team is comprised of palliative care physicians and pharmacists, who are specially trained in palliative medicine, and work together with a patient’s team of medical doctors to provide an extra layer of support. We also provide:

Outpatient services include:

Relief from pain and other uncomfortable symptoms due to a serious illness.
Assistance in making difficult medical decisions.
Help you communicate your treatment goals and plans to the rest of your health care team.
Guidance in planning for living well, based on your needs, concerns, and goals for care.