Introduction

Greetings to everyone in Blog-Land; this is my first Blog, so be kind!  Many of you know me from my work in Palliative Medicine and Pain Management for the past 20 years.  I am Professor of Internal Medicine and Director of Palliative Care at the Medical College of Wisconsin/Froedtert Hospital (www.mcw.edu/pallmed).  I was the founding editor of the Journal of Palliative Medicine, which I turned over last year to the able hands of Charles von Gunten, MD.  I am the co-founder of EPERC (www.eperc.mcw.edu) and continue to edit Fast Facts and Concepts.  From 1997-2004 I coordinated the National Residency End-of-Life Education Project, working to integrate palliative care curriculum into over 400 residency programs in IM, FP, Surgery and Neurology.  Together with Bruce Himmlestein, MD, my pediatric colleague at MCW, we coordinate one of the six Palliative Care Leadership Centers sponsored by the Center to Improve Palliative Care; www.capc.org.   I look forward to using the Blog format to share thoughts about palliative care clinical issues, health professional education, and health policy and welcome feedback from readers.

Disclaimer: I am employed by the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW); the writings on this blog are mine alone and do not represent those of MCW or other members of the MCW Palliative Care program staff.