What is palliative care in the context of the Catholic faith?

In Catholicism, each person is a unity of body and soul. Ending a person’s life, even if an individual does not seem to have a “good” quality of life, is morally wrong.

Roughly 22% of the world’s population is Catholic, making this an important topic to consider and respect among our faith community. This can often be a very confusing topic debating what measures are acceptable, such as physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia.

Improving the lives of patients and their families, upholding the dignity of each person of Christ, and allowing them to have a peaceful death is important among all the faithful. During this webinar, Dr. Carroll explained palliative care and what this means in the context of the Catholic faith. He also explored the concerns many families express, such as areas of pain management and nutrition.

Watch the webinar here:

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About the Presenter

Dr. Carroll is a husband and father of four lovely, and energetic, children and strives to be a faithful Catholic.

He practices both general internal medicine (primary care for adults) and palliative care at the University of Rochester Medical Center, both in the office and hospital settings. He is involved in medical education at all stages, from medical students to residents, fellows, and practicing clinicians. Dr. Carroll’s scholarly interests include improving the quality of communication around serious illness and end-of-life care and Catholic Bioethics.

Dr. Carroll also directs the Advanced Communication Training (ACT) Program and is the President of the Finger Lakes Guild of the Catholic Medical Association.

Thomas M. Carroll M.D., Ph.D.

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