Harborview’s Homeless Palliative Care team is the nation’s first mobile outreach program supporting people experiencing homelessness who are also living with serious illnesses.

Our palliative care team is here to help you and your family navigate grief related to your diagnosis and illness. Our skilled social workers and spiritual care providers are available to meet in person or over the phone, and we can also help you access support groups and helpful community resources.

We meet with the other healthcare providers involved in your care and act as a liaison between you and them. We make sure that all of your providers understand what you want and need, helping to give you more stability and control.

Among our team are highly trained social workers and chaplains who will spend time with you talking and listening as you navigate feelings or spiritual concerns related to your illness, at any point along its course. Our specialists are also available to talk with and support your family members as needed.

We listen closely to your personal needs and goals in order to match them to available medical treatment and care options. We also help ensure that you understand your illness, your treatment options and any resources that would be helpful to your care.

Our palliative care teams specialize in helping people with the symptoms, feelings and stress that come along with serious illnesses. Our skilled, compassionate specialists help treat and manage any symptoms that cause distress, including pain, depression, anxiety, shortness of breath, fatigue, constipation, nausea, loss of appetite and difficulty sleeping.

Hospice is a type of palliative care that allows terminally ill patients to live out the remainder of their lives with dignity and peace. We refer our patients to four licensed hospice programs that serve King County, and UW Medicine physicians and ARNPs serve as attending providers there. Our specialists enable hospice patients to live life to the fullest, even with a terminal diagnosis, and help them have a comfortable death experience as well. Our 24-hour or on-call services also include spiritual care, psychological and social support, bereavement support and respite care for caregivers.

If your illness is in the final stages, we help you with end-of-life issues and advance care planning, such as whether to use certain medications, where you want to spend your final days, and which treatments you wish to receive. We also support you in living your final days as fully as possible and navigating any difficulties and fears that arise.