78: End-of-Life Care: Doing What’s Right for Patients
Meet Amber Barnato, M.D.:
Amber Barnato, M.D. is the John E. Wennberg Distinguished Professor and the Director of The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth. She is trained in two medical specialties, public health and preventive medicine, and hospice and palliative medicine. Dr. Barnato received a bachelor’s from the University of California at Berkeley, an M.D. from Harvard Medical School, an MPH from the University of California at Berkeley, and an MS from Stanford University.
Key Insights:
Amber Barnato, M.D. explores how her medical career experiences led her to the focus of palliative and end-of-life care.
- Expanding Horizons. Dr. Barnato took a year before medical school to be a research assistant and speech writer for Assistant Surgeon General Dr. McGinnis. That experience expanded her horizons, exposing her to the policy process, and Dr. McGinnis served a sponsor, improving her medical school candidacy.
- Path to Palliative Care. Dr. Barnato was morally distressed by the end-of-life care she saw in her general surgery internship, which lacked emotional support, conversations with family, and concerns over quality of life. After listening to a story about end-of-life care research on the radio, she decided she wanted to join the research effort herself.
- Next Steps for the Dartmouth Atlas. The Dartmouth Atlas focuses on overuse and unwarranted variation of healthcare. However, Dr. Barnato wants the Atlas to expand to underuse and unjust variation. She would like to see a focus on health equity.
This episode is hosted by Joanne Conroy, M.D. She is a member of the Advisory Council for Her Story and is the CEO and President of Dartmouth-Hitchcock and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health.
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