About
The Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) is a national organization dedicated to increasing the availability of quality, equitable health care for people living with serious illnesses. CAPC provides healthcare professionals and organizations with training, tools, and technical assistance to meet this need. CAPC is part of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, in New York City.
In addition to its main website, CAPC provides GetPalliativeCare.org, a website providing palliative care information and resources for patients and families living with serious illnesses.
History
Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) was established in 1999 by Dr. Diane E. Meier as a National Program Office of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). In 2008, palliative care officially became a medical subspecialty for physicians and social workers.
In 2015, with support from The John A. Hartford Foundation, CAPC became a membership organization and launched an online clinical training curriculum to train clinicians from all specialties and disciplines in core palliative care skills, such as pain and symptom management and communication skills. CAPC’s 1,800+ member organizations include health systems, hospitals, hospices, home health agencies, long-term care facilities, medical groups, health plans, and other entities.
Leadership
In 2021, founder and director Dr. Diane E. Meier stepped down, and Brynn Bowman, MPA succeeded her as Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Meier assumed the role of CAPC Director Emerita and Strategic Medical Advisor.
Philosophy
Center to Advance Palliative Care’s goal is to improve access to, utilization of, and quality of care provided to all people living with serious illness. This requires that all clinicians have the knowledge and skill to hold meaningful conversations with patients and families and to effectively manage complex pain and other distressing symptoms. Since the vast majority of practicing clinicians have never been taught these skills, a concentrated effort is needed. CAPC aims to reach all frontline clinicians caring for people with serious illnesses—an estimated total of 2.7 million U.S. health professionals.