Bringing Back the Art of Medicine to Surgery

Abstract

In a relatively short period of time, the need for incorporating primary surgical palliative care into surgical education and residency curriculum has become apparent. This provides an opportunity for growth for surgeons and surgical residents and a method to explore spirituality and wholeness of the patient. It also has the potential for increasing the sense of fulfillment that residents and surgeons alike can drive from caring for complex surgical patients. Given the significant constraints of today’s graduate medical education world, there remain challenges that must be overcome when designing curricula and incorporating surgical palliative care into practice and resident education. The Surgical Palliative Care Society brings hope for the future of this specialty and encourages multidisciplinary discussions about the practice of, education in, and research on surgical palliative care.