Six rural Minnesota communities have been selected to participate in Stratis Health's Rural Palliative Care Community Development Project.

The project works to establish or strengthen palliative care programs. Palliative care focuses on relieving suffering and improving the quality of life for patients with chronic disease and other serious and advanced illnesses. Unlike hospice, palliative care is appropriate at any point in a serious illness and can be provided at the same time as curative treatment.

Through the program, participating communities will receive one-on-one support and technical assistance, according to a Wednesday news release from the Bloomington-based nonprofit organization that works to improve health care quality and safety. Fairview Health Services' Palliative Care Program is a partner on the 10-month project.

The interdisciplinary community teams and their lead organizations are:

• Detroit Lakes area, Becker County: Emmanuel Nursing Home
• FirstCare Medical Services Home Health and Hospice, Fosston
• Kanabec County: Kanabec Hospital, Mora
• Palliative Care Partners of Cook County: Cook County North Shore Hospital, Grand Marais
• Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians: Red Lake Hospital - Indian Health Service

There is no single, best model for providing palliative care in rural communities, Stratis President and Chief Executive Officer Jennifer Lundblad said in the release.

"Our work with palliative care is revealing the creativity in rural communities to serve patients with chronic disease and other serious illness," she said. "We want to decrease the number of patients having to leave their home community to receive this patient-centered care."

Although rural areas may lack financing and medical professionals trained in palliative care compared to urban areas, they excel at having smaller bureaucracies, closer interpersonal relationships, a greater primary care emphasis and greater opportunities for collaborative practice across care settings, the release said. All are advantages for supporting palliative care services.

For more information visit www.stratishealth.org/palcare.