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Dr. Ramona Mahtani

dr. ramona mahtani

        Role at the Centre

Leader, In-hospital care program

In-hospital care doctor

Year started at the Centre

2010

 

Dr. Ramona Mahtani understands that families often feel isolated as they struggle to make critical decisions when a family member is dying. This is why she makes it a priority to help reduce the burden on families as they navigate through the various end-of-life options.

“This journey for the families has been a difficult one. I see it as an important part of my role to help patients and families make some really difficult decisions. I make every effort to help guide the clinical decision-making that families are faced with at this very trying time.”

Although Dr. Mahtani’s guidance is based primarily on her patient’s clinical diagnosis, she also considers such factors as the family’s capacity for social and emotional support. Her broad perspective equips her to help families deal with challenges that go beyond the medical needs of their loved one.

“Even though I specialize in palliative medicine, my approach to end-of-life care is really a combination of family medicine along with psychiatry and internal medicine,” she says.

With her family medicine residency under her belt, Dr. Mahtani went on to complete a full fellowship year in palliative medicine in 2009.  She vividly recalls the experience that enticed her down the path of palliative medicine. As a third-year medical student doing a family practice elective, being assigned to a palliative patient with colon cancer was her green light to start reading all of the palliative medicine textbooks she could find.

“I discovered that there were things I could definitely do for my patient, especially to help her with the pain and fatigue and also to help stimulate her appetite. I was amazed that there was so much good medicine that can be done when a patient is palliative.” 

Dr. Mahtani has come a long way since her inspired initiation into palliative medicine. She has broadened her experience by providing palliative care and acute care consultations in hospital settings and by supporting patients and their families within a home-based model of palliative care.

“Achieving quality of life and dignified comfort care is attainable for patients when they receive the necessary support. The home-based care that we offer at our Centre is one way to achieve that.”

 

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