Overview
The online Interprofessional Master of Science in Palliative Care (MSPC) degree and graduate certificate programs have been designed to meet the educational needs of individuals who are currently working in or who wish to work in palliative care and hospice. Students in this degree program will gain a deeper understanding of the physical, psychological, spiritual, and social needs of patients with serious illness and their family caregivers.
The program will be of interest to a wide range of healthcare professionals, including but not limited to the following: physicians, nurses (including BSN and advance practice nurses), physician assistants, pharmacists, social workers, spiritual care providers, psychologists, therapists, counselors, and ethicists.
Program courses are delivered in an interprofessional learning environment that mirrors the palliative care work setting. Each week features a biomedical topic paired with a psycho-social-spiritual-ethics topic. The program focuses on advancing clinical knowledge, developing clinical wisdom, building an evidence-based palliative care practice, enhancing communication skills, and addressing physical, psychological, social, and spiritual suffering, as well as ethical issues.
The MSPC program is comprised of 36 credit hours, which students complete over a period of two (minimum) to seven (maximum) years from the time they begin the master’s program. Coursework is primarily delivered in an online format. MSPC students attend three on-campus weekend intensives and complete a capstone project in their community. The intensive experience utilizes CU's Center for Advancing Professional Excellence (CAPE) to practice communication skills with standardized patients in individual and group settings.
