Karuna means compassion in Sanskrit, and that is the focus of the Karuna Palliative Care Program. Program staff members work with a child’s physicians as well as their families to provide palliative care to children with potentially life limiting conditions.

An interdisciplinary team offers patients continuity of care, follow-up, and early intervention through a 24-hour on-call system. The team and the child’s family work with the school, physician’s office, the county, and other social service programs to put a comprehensive care plan in place.

The program helps families pursue goals such as reducing emergency room visits and repeat hospitalizations, or improving school attendance. A primary goal is to support the child and family in their efforts at home. As the team gets to know the child and family, resources are put into place that can support families in complex decision-making, managing medical crises, and other unexpected events.

Benefits of Karuna:

• Assists in child’s medical management through home visits
• Offers families 24-hour on-call access to health care providers familiar with the child’s case
• Emphasizes comfort care, quality of life, and satisfying relationships
• Provides home visits by nurses, chaplains, child life, social workers, and volunteers
• Provides spiritual, emotional, and psychosocial support for the entire family, including siblings and grandparents
• Works with and supports school professionals
• Ensures continuity of care over time
• Provides bereavement follow-up care if needed
• Offers ethics consultations if necessary
• Coordinates medical and alternative therapies

For more information, contact: Stacy Remke
Phone:  612-813-6328
Email: stacy.remke@childrensmn.org

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