Nursing Perspectives: Building an Interprofessional Perinatal Palliative Care Team

Abstract

Perinatal palliative care as an area of interest in maternal child health began in the 1990s and continues to grow throughout the United States and the world. With this concept of care, families are supported through the pregnancy, birth, and death of an infant who has a life-limiting condition. A perinatal palliative care team also assists families whose infants are admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) with a life-threatening condition. The focus is placed on holistic care that identifies family wishes, coordination of care, support, bonding, pain control, and memory making. Staff are also supported. This article focuses on the steps needed to build an effective perinatal palliative care team.