2025 Palliative Care Days:
Day 1: Research Day: Wednesday, October 29th
Day 2: Clinical Day: Thursday, October 30th
Anschutz Medical CampusKrugman Conference Hall in RC2Research Complex 2, 12700 E 19th Ave, Aurora, CO 80045
Tamara Somers, PhD, is a Professor at Duke University School of Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. She is a member of the Pain Prevention and Treatment Research Program at Duke, and a faculty member at the Duke Cancer Institute (DCI).
Dr. Somers has extensive experience in the development and testing of behavioral symptom management intervention protocols for patients with pain and other symptoms due to cancer and other chronic diseases.
Dr. Somers’ program of funded research focuses on creating accessible and scalable behavioral symptom management interventions often using mobile health delivery modalities to improve patient access to strategies to improve symptom management. She has additionally collaborated with numerous colleagues and provided extensive mentoring and consultation in behavioral pain and symptom management and behavioral trial design through local and national leadership roles. In addition, she has created and co-directs a clinical psychology training program at Duke Cancer Institute that provides intensive training in the clinical application of behavioral medicine.
Her visit is hosted by the University of Colorado Program in Palliative Care Research.
Day 1: Keynote Presentation: Tamara Somers, PhD
Wednesday, October 29, 2025: 12:00-1:00pm
“Harnessing Information to Optimize Use of Behavioral Pain Interventions: Can we Manage and Prevent Pain in Patients with Cancer?”
Continuing Education Credit: 1.0 contact hours
CU College of Nursing is an approved provider of nursing continuing professional development hours by the Colorado Nurses Association, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
Day 1: Schedule * Topics for Scholarly Presentations/Posters pending post Abstract Reviews
8:00-8:30
Registration, Continental Breakfast and Networking
8:30-8:40
Welcome & Review Plan for the Day with Highlights from the Past Year
8:40-9:25
Oral Scholarly Podium Presentations*
9:25 -9:40
Break
9:40 -10:25
10:40-11:00
Rapid Poster Presentations*
11:00-11:40
Poster viewing and networking
11:40-11:50
Lunch: Pickup and Go to Keynote
12:00-1:00
Keynote Presentation
1:00- 1:15
Closing Remarks and Acknowledgements
Contact for questions: Heather Coats, PhD APRN [email protected]
Day 2: 19th Annual Clinical Perspectives on Palliative Care: Thursday, October 30, 2025
UCHealth is an approved provider of nursing continuing professional development hours by the Colorado Nurses Association, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.
Continuing Education Credit: 7.0 contact hours
In order for the participants to receive 7 Contact Hours, they must attend 100% of activity and miss no more than 10 minutes of the activity, AND complete and submit the electronic evaluation form at the end of the conference. (Participant must answer all questions to receive contact hour certificate.)
Location: Krugman Conference Hall in RC2 Building: Research Complex 2, 12700 E 19th Ave, Aurora, CO 80045
Learning Outcomes: At the end of this course, participants will be able to describe and share effective methods with one another to assess and evaluate value-based goals of care, grief and spirituality for themselves as well as the patients they care for.
Day 2 Program Schedule:
7:00-7:45
Registration and Continental Breakfast
7:45-8:00
Welcome and Introductions
Hareklia Brackett, APRN CNS, ACHPN and Rocco Miele, APRN
8:00-9:00
Keynote: “Using Brief Behavioral Strategies to Improve Symptom Management in Palliative Care”
Tamara J. Somers, PhD, Professor at Duke University School of Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Dr. Tamara J. Somers Specialty in conducting research and implementing behavioral interventions for pain and other symptoms in patients with chronic disease
https://psychiatry.duke.edu/profile/tamara-j-somers
9:00 -9:10
9:10 -9:20
State of the Science Article 1
Jaye Espinas, MD – Palliative Care Fellow
9:20-10:20
"Compassionate Conversations: Building Trust with Hispanic Patients in Palliative Care"
Ana Fauvet, CMI – Spanish Medical Interpreter
10:20-10:30
1030-1050
State of the Science Article 2 and 3
Geordyn Hoge, MD and Meghan O’Leary-Kelly, MD – Palliative Care Fellows
10:50-12:00
"Supporting Those in Grief: Personal & Professional Lessons"
Maggie Gould, LCSW, ASWPH-C and Miranda Wichelns, LCSW, ASWPH-C – Palliative Care Social Workers
12:00-12:30
Lunch (provided with your paid registration)
12:30-12:40
Break and Find Your Breakout Room
1240-1:30
Breakout Session # 1
See below
1:30-1:40
Break and Switch Rooms
1:40-2:30
Breakout Session # 2
2:30-2:40
2:40-3:00
State of the Science Article 4 and 5
Laurie Sherlock, MD and Kaitlyn Weeber, MD – Palliative Care Fellows
3:00-4:00
“Awe, Meaning Making and Asking the Big Questions. How and why palliative care providers should assess their own spirituality”
Darcy Campbell, AGNP-C, ACHPN, Sr. Instructor, Palliative Care Service and Rev. Andrew G. Wood, M.Div, BCC Palliative Care Lead Chaplain
4:00-4:15
Closing Remarks and Evaluations
Rocco Miele, APRN
Breakout Sessions:(Each session repeated twice; you will have the opportunity to attend two of them.)
Contact for questions:Hareklia Brackett, APRN, CNS, ACHPN: [email protected]
Cancellation Policy: A refund, minus service fees, will be granted if notified before 5 pm on Tuesday, September 30, 2025. No refunds will be granted after this date for cancellation or non-attendance.
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