MaineHealth Palliative Care Damariscotta provides specialized medical care for people living with a serious illness. Our compassionate care team includes physicians, advance practice providers, nurses, social workers and chaplains who have training and special skills to help people living with advanced illness.
Improving quality of life for patients and families
Our goal is to foster the best possible quality of life for people living with a serious or life-threatening illness. We work closely with each patient and their loved ones to develop a plan that meets their unique needs and preferences.
Services
We work closely with patients and families to determine which services will provide the greatest benefit. Services may include:
- Management of pain and other symptoms
- Help with treatment choices, decisions and goals
- Planning for future care needs
- Emotional and spiritual support
- Integrative therapies such as acupuncture, reiki, massage and osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT)
- Bereavement support and referral
- Assistance with community resources
- Completion of advance care planning documents
A provider referral is required. Talk to your doctor about a referral to our practice.
More about our services
Palliative care (pronounced pal-lee-uh-tiv) is specialized medical care that provides help in managing pain and other symptoms of serious illness. It also provides emotional, psychological and spiritual support to patients and their families as they plan for the future. Palliative care teams work together with primary care physicians and specialists to create individualized care plans. The goal of care is to make the quality of life better for both the patient and the family.
Palliative care may be right for you if any of the following statements are true:
- I am living with a serious illness that is causing pain, stress, nausea, difficulty breathing, fatigue, trouble sleeping or loss of appetite.
- I would like to better understand my illness and get guidance about the treatment options.
- I would like for my medical care and treatments to be aligned with my values, goals and wishes.
- I would like help making plans for my future care needs.
Palliative care is for everyone with a serious illness that keeps them from living as well as possible. Many patients continue to get healing therapy while receiving palliative care. Palliative care is right at any time during a serious illness.
When an illness has progressed to an advanced stage and life-prolonging interventions are no longer desired, hospice care can provide compassion, care and comfort through the end of life.
Most insurance plans, including Medicare and MaineCare, cover palliative care. We welcome all patients who are living with a serious or life-limiting illness, regardless of insurance coverage.
