The Health Design Podcast: Michael Fratkin
An interview with Dr. Michael Fratkin on The Health Design Podcast with Moyez Jiwa, 8/14/20. “I don’t take care of any patients. I take care of people. … It’s not rocket surgery, but it’s a radical departure.” ResolutionCare founder and CEO, Dr. Michael Fratkin, recently spoke with host Moyez Jiwa of the Journal of Health Design’s The Health Design Podcast about his path to becoming a palliative care physician and his philosophy for working with the people in his care. What he has discovered is that this approach can, in many cases, lead to a deeper, transformative healing, even as [...]
6 Months or Less Episode 8: Manuel
An interview with Manuel Santaella by Alexandra Salmon on the 6 Months or Less podcast. Some people live life in a constant dance with mortality. At 94 years old, Manuel Santaella is just such a fellow. Born nearly a century ago in a sugar cane farm in Venezuela, Manny has encountered near death a dizzying number of times. How he's navigated those experiences and created an extraordinary life of service is a set of stories that only he can tell. With the help of journalist, artist, and mother, Alexandra Salmon, Manuel’s voice carries in a brilliant podcast interview that is guaranteed to [...]
Telemedicine in Palliative Care Master Class
ResolutionCare has two new physicians, for a total of three palliative medicine physicians providing telemedicine to seriously ill people in their homes. To share how Tele-palliative Care works, New Chief Operating Officer Brian Mistler, PhD., and founding physician Dr. Michael Fratkin, M.D., are offering a Master Class on Tele-palliative Care through California State University's Shiley Institute on Palliative Care. Register here: Telemedicine in Palliative Care: Organizational Planning and Clinical Skills
Leadership lessons from the end of life
An in-depth interview with Dr. Michael Fratkin by David Shifrin of the High Stakes podcast at The Art of Change by Jarrard Phillips Cate & Hancock, 12/18/19. “Successful listening begins with acknowledging common ground. Fratkin enters every conversation with a new ‘patient’ by telling them that, well, they’re not a patient. ‘We let them know we don’t take care of patients,’ he said. ‘We only take care of people. And we do it with an extraordinary team of other people.’ ” You can listen to the entire interview, which includes some of Dr. Fratkin's “insights on listening and stories that [...]
Hospices, Palliative Providers Innovate to Better Serve Rural Patients
By Jim Parker at Hospice News, 11/21/19 “Rural families have less access to hospice care programs than people in more concentrated populations, according to a 2015 study. ... “ 'Rural palliative care is different. The expertise that organizations have developed around delivering palliative care in other geographic areas doesn’t always naturally translate,' said Brian Mistler, chief operating officer of Resolution Care. 'Also, a lot of the patient population that we serve in rural communities don’t have the same privileges that some of the rest of us have. It’s hard to wrap our minds around the impact that lack of access [...]
Telemedicine 3.0: How Video Technology Can Support People With Serious Illness
by Michael Fratkin at the Center to Advance Palliative Care's Palliative in Practice Blog, 6/12/19 "The accelerating pace of technology that is pressing us back in our seats – ubiquitous smartphones, lightning fast connections, and cloud-based processing – now support the deep and personal work of caring for our fellow human beings in their most vulnerable moments. Video calls can open a magic window into the lives of people under our care, allowing us to establish and maintain relationships without intrusion, and helping us to reach more people in need. This evolution, what I call Telemedicine 3.0, opens a world [...]
Resolution Care Network with Dr. Michael Fratkin
An interview with Dr. Michael Fratkin by Sheryl Smith on the engAGING conversations podcast at sherylsmithrn.com. "Technology and advances in medicine have increased our longevity. As a result our society is growing older and frailer. But our society is no longer set up to hold us in our frailty The need for palliative care services is growing, and Resolution Care Network is setting the tone for outstanding care." Listen to this interview about ResolutionCare, palliative care, and how you can advocate for yourself and your loved ones at the engAGING conversations podcast.
Michael Fratkin: Soft Landings
By Stephen Waldron at B-TAC February 28, 2019 "Drawing on experience from palliative care leaders like Center to Advance Palliative Care Founder Diane Meier, Dr. Fratkin is driven to use his skills and resources to treat people in the setting that is right for them. Echoing the words of poet Mary Oliver, he said that those with privilege must use their advantages to benefit others. 'We have this one wild and precious life,' said Dr. Fratkin. 'We need to seize the mechanisms of caring in our society. That’s our responsibility.' " Read the entirety of Waldron's blog post at B-TAC, the Blog to [...]
10 Ways Great Companies Show Employees They Care
by Jillian Rodriguez at Small Giants Community, 2/4/19 ResolutionCare is featured under "Care for them as a whole person" in this article about how Small Giants companies make their employees feel valued and appreciated. "Purpose-driven leaders are saying goodbye to the idea of work-life balance and instead inviting team members to bring their whole selves to work ... Here’s how some companies are cultivating emotional, mental, and financial wellness for the whole family." Read the entire article at smallgiants.org.
Woo-Woo and the Hammer
By Thadeus Greenson in the North Coast Journal, 1/17/19"Here's how Fratkin describes his approach to new patients: 'I let them know who I am and explore who they are. I help them understand the totality of their circumstances. I identify with them what's most important to them, what matters to them given all the things that can't be changed or can't be known about their future course. Then, I roll up my sleeves and let them tell me what my job is.' ..."Having been a part of ResolutionCare for a couple of years now, [nurse Lauri] Rose says it's clear to her [...]
Local Healthcare Company Focus of WaPo Story
by Thadeus Greenson at the North Coast Journal online, Wednesday 12/24/18. "In case you missed it, The Washington Postrecently put a spotlight on local palliative care company ResolutionCare. The Post’s story, which published Dec. 15, uses the story of Hoopa brothers-in-law Gordon Surber and Mark Hailey — both of whom have been diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease — to explore the impact of palliative care and the inequities of how insurers cover the costs." Read the entire article at the North Coast Journal online.
How California Is Changing Palliative Care
The Next Avenue story featured in Forbes. "Although other Medicaid programs may pay for components of palliative care — such as advance care planning — 'California is truly leading in this regard,' says Stacie Sinclair, senior policy manager for the Center to Advance Palliative Care, a national organization. ... The ResolutionCare palliative care team includes physicians, nurses, social workers, care coordinators, a spiritual counselor and community health workers. 'We combine telehealth-based videoconferencing with knock-on-the-door, eat-the-cookies house calls,' says Fratkin. ... 'They’re just fantastic people,' says George Johnson, 60, who lives by himself in Eureka, Calif. and has a number of serious [...]
Why California is a Hotbed for In-Home Palliative Care
By Tim Mullaney at Home Health Care News, November 27, 2018 "A Medicaid program in California is increasing access to palliative care services in people’s homes. ... 'California is truly leading in this regard,' Stacie Sinclair, senior policy manager for the Center to Advance Palliative Care, told Next Avenue, which is a PBS website. Palliative care provider ResolutionCare, which serves clients in rural northern California, is featured in the article. About 145 of the company’s clients, representing roughly two-thirds of its total customer base, are on Medi-Cal. Many of these people are in their 50s or 60s and are not initially [...]
How California Is Changing Palliative Care
by Beth Baker at Next Avenue on November 27, 2018: [California's] Medicaid program takes a novel approach for some with life-threatening diseases. "In January, California became the first state to mandate home-based palliative care (care given to improve quality of life for patients with life-threatening diseases) to those in its Medicaid program. In California, that program is called Medi-Cal. ... ... The most important thing though, says Fratkin, is not the savings. 'What we care about is self-reported improvement in quality of life, in well-being, even the possibility of healing, and less drama and insecurity as people move to their death. Those are the [...]
ResolutionCare Portrayals in Months to Years
Dr. Michael Fratkin collaborated with a friend, award winning photographer and journalist Justin Maxon, to produce a project in words and pictures they hope has impact. In addition to being displayed on the Portrayals page here on our website and being produced as a series of limited edition prints, this series has been published in the Fall 2018 edition of Months to Years.
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