About
Dr. Abrahm’s teaching and research concentration within palliative care is pain and symptom management of patients with cancer. The fourth edition of her book, Comprehensive Supportive and Palliative Care for Cancer Patients (formerly titled A Physician’s Guide to Pain and Symptom Management in Cancer Patients) will be published in 2022 by Johns Hopkins University Press. She and Jessica Goldhirsch, MSW, LCSW have been working for several years with medical interpreters at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, conducting monthly dialogues with them about challenges they face doing palliative care interpretation.
Dr. Abrahm was a co-investigator of a PCORI-funded study designed to enhance patient self-management of symptoms. She was also a co-investigator of an R01 and now is a co-investigator of an SBIR grant in which she led development of algorithms that when programmed into an Electronic Health Record (EHR) (such as EPIC), generate suggestions for assessment and management of each individual patient’s symptoms. Those suggestions would appear in the EHR during the visit with the oncologists and would thereby improve their ability to provide better symptom control for their cancer patients. She also teaches about difficult conversations and has a great deal of experience in palliative care program development.
Other Appointments
- Institute Physician, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
- Former Chief of the Division of Adult Palliative Care in the Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative care.
Education / Honors
- University of California Medical School; Massachusetts General Hospital intern and residency
- University of Pennsylvania: member of the Hematology/Oncology department 1980-2000
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