Pain can ruin anyone’s quality of life. More than 80 percent of older adults have chronic medical conditions that are typically associated with pain, such as arthritis. Do they have to live with pain? Can it be better controlled? All too often these questions aren’t asked by patients, families, or even by health care providers. Some fear pain medication. Some believe that pain should be tolerated. Unfortunately, this is what happened to a member of my family. Richard, my 66-year old cousin, was suffering from an array of chronic diseases. He was unable to get up from his bed. He loved to read, yet he could no longer sit up and hold a book. He was isolated in his room. But there is a silver lining to the story. Richard received a life-changing consultation from a palliative care physician and her team.

Palliative care is not just about making people comfortable at the end of their lives. The team also focuses on pain and symptom management for people, like Richard, coping with complex chronic disease. I knew to reach out to a palliative care physician because the John A. Hartford Foundation is a proud funder of Diane Meier, who directs the Center to Advance Palliative Care. Through Dr. Meier’s efforts and those of the team at Mount Sinai, a Web-based directory of palliative care providers by state and by hospital is available to the public. I used this resource to find help for my cousin.

Palliative care is about helping people achieve their goals at the end of life. So why is palliative care such a sensitive topic? During the heated debates on health care reform, some equated palliative care with “death panels.” There is a large body of evidence that disagrees. Just last week, Dr. Meier wrote on HealthAGEnda about a palliative care study recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The study found that patients with lung cancer who were randomly assigned to receive palliative care not only were more active and happier than those who did not receive palliative care in addition to standard therapy, but they also lived three months longer on average. Dr. Meier discusses the study in depth, and also calls for more research into palliative care for older adults.

And thankfully, Richard is back to reading. He’s doing better thanks to palliative care.