"Bringing palliative and end-of-life care support to primary care physicians across Alberta."
Overview
This service provides physicians across Alberta who do not have direct access to Alberta Health Services consult services schedules access to 24/7 consult support from an on-call palliative physician specialist.
This service is available for physicians who are caring for adult and/or pediatric palliative and end-of-life care (PEOLC) patients. Physicians can access palliative physician specialist on-call consultations, no matter where they are in Alberta, via RAAPID (Referral, Access, Advice, Placement, Information & Destination).
This service:
- provides palliative physician support to physicians in urban and rural health care settings across the province.
- gives physicians who treat patients at home or in the community the option of receiving expert palliative physician consult support as an alternative to relocating patients and their families to urban areas or other health care facilities for palliative specialist care
- provides physicians with support, guidance, and confidence through consultation, allowing them to further care for patients within their location of choice when and where ever possible.
FAQs: Palliative Physician On-Call Service
What does the 24/7 Palliative Physician On-Call Service provide?
This service is designed to support physicians—especially primary care physicians and those in rural settings with no direct access to Alberta Health Services consult schedules and access numbers —who provide PEOLC to patients.
RAAPID is available to physicians to get support from a designated palliative physician, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. This service aims to increase PEOLC capacity in communities across Alberta while providing quality PEOLC services in every care setting, including patients’ home.
Who is this service for?
This service is ONLY for physicians who need support from a palliative physician for their adult or pediatric PEOLC patients who do not have direct access to Alberta Health Services consult services schedules or internal call numbers.
Assistance is available for physicians in:
- home care programs
- long term care homes
- community nursing and support services
- hospices
- day programs
- supportive housing
- correctional facilities
- acute care facilities
For the Edmonton Zone, additional on-call palliative physician specialist consultation information can be found here
Edmonton Zone Palliative Care Program: Admission and Referral Information
How do I access this services
Physicians can access this service from anywhere in Alberta.
When should I access the program?
At the physician’s discretion, the service should be accessed whenever a physician is in need of PEOLC support.
