ABOUT
How can we make the best possible healthcare decisions?
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When living with an illness, diagnosis, or health condition that significantly impacts our day to day lives, how do we find information and perspectives that is most relevant to us? ​
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Palliative care specialists are in some ways like your professional advocates in the medical world. We start by asking, "What is most important to you?" and tailor guidance and medical recommendations based upon an individual's (or individual family's) priorities and goals. We encourage patients and family members to advocate for the medical care that is most in line with their values while helping them understand the realities of their health situations.
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After all, the level of medical care you are looking for may look very different from the level of medical care the person next to you is seeking.
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As the cardiologist focuses on disorders and diseases related to the heart organ, so the palliative care specialist focuses on the whole person/whole family needs when one is attempting to make the most of living with complex illness, worsening health, or an unexpected prognosis.
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One can easily be led astray by the myriad of medical options that exist in America. A palliative care conversation could help a person step back and view their medical or health situation as a whole, giving them enough clarity to advocate for medical care that is high-value and personalized for them.
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Sometimes a conversation on realistic trajectories and expectations, reframing hope, and other tough subjects can give back a sense of control to a person living through one of the most difficult times of their life...and too often, this conversation never happens.​​
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Because there is so much confusion regarding the palliative care sub-specialty, I am writing in an attempt to provide clarity. I share concretely what I do. I explain perspectives of medical decision making from the palliative care standpoint.
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My goal is to provide practical guidance on how someone, regardless of their medical issues, can advocate for themself as they navigate our fragmented healthcare system. I hope this information will give you the confidence, strength, and courage to advocate for what matters most to you and to obtain the most value out of your health care.
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I know misconceptions exist about palliative care. Real palliative care is about empowerment.
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Welcome to Real Palliative Care.
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Jeanne
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(palliative care physician by day, wife and mom by night, and fellow human being 24/7)
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Dr. Jeanne Lee is a board certified internal medicine and palliative care physician. She attended University of South Alabama and completed her medical education and internal medicine residency at Duke University School of Medicine and Duke University Hospital. She has a decade's experience working as a hospitalist caring for patients admitted to the hospital and intensive care unit in multiple regions of the United States. Overlapping this period, she transitioned to primarily providing palliative care assistance to patients and their families in multiple settings ranging from the hospital and intensive care unit to the clinic and patients' homes. She has guided family meetings through difficult decision making for over ten years and currently practices in a county hospital.
Dr. Lee teaches as an adjunct assistant professor at multiple institutions. She is a speaker, educating healthcare professionals on communicating difficult topics. Her speaker website is www.jeannelee.com. She is the author of the Amazon bestselling book, Own Your Care: A Family Guide to Navigating Complex Illness, Declining Health, or Unexpected Prognosis. She lives in Texas with her husband and four children.