The University of California San Francisco School of Medicine received a $1.5 million grant to establish a new endowment that funds palliative medicine innovation projects, according to an Aug. 25 news release.
The Cambia Health Foundation, part of nonprofit healthcare company Cambia Health Solutions, awarded UCSF the $1.5 million to start the endowment for the medical school's palliative medicine division.
The first innovation project will focus on improving training for clinicians treating patients with serious illnesses via telemedicine. The project is in response to self-isolation and quarantine efforts sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fund will support development of a series of educational modules for students and other trainees to use and learn necessary skills for using telemedicine successfully, including how to best orient patients to the technology, preserve confidentiality and privacy and address sensitive topics.