# Community Health: Planning to Live

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-valley-today-1144037/community-health-planning-to-live
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-valley-today-1144037/community-health-planning-to-live.md
Podcast: [The Valley Today](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-valley-today-1144037)
Published: 2026-06-18T15:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://thevalleytodaypodcast.com/community-health-planning-to-live
Audio file: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/thevalleytoday/20260618VT.mp3?dest-id=2999852
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-valley-today-1144037/episodes/community-health-planning-to-live
Duration seconds: 1403

## Resource

Palliative isn't a synonym for terminal. On this Community Health edition of The Valley Today, host Janet Michael welcomes back Dr. Jim VanKirk , board-certified palliative care specialist and Medical Director of Valley Health's Palliative Care Program, joined by team social worker Rachel Schwartz, to clear up one of the most persistent misconceptions in medicine — and to make the case for thinking about palliative care as a living tool, not an end-of-life one. Dr. VanKirk walks through what palliative care actually is — symptom support, treatment planning, and team-based care for patients with serious illnesses who are still receiving aggressive treatment, including chemotherapy, radiation, and ICU care — and explains the research showing that earlier palliative intervention actually correlates with patients living longer. Rachel talks through the role of a palliative social worker, the kinds of grief families navigate along the way of a progressive illness (not just at the end), and the concept of "substituted judgment" when a patient can't speak for themselves. Plus: a thorough, practical conversation about advance directives — what they are, why every adult needs one starting at age 18, why April 16th is the easiest day to remember to update yours, and the family stories (including Dr. VanKirk's own) that show why having "the document" isn't the point — the conversation that leads to the document is. ABOUT VALLEY HEALTH'S PALLIATIVE CARE PROGRAM A specialized medical service for patients with serious or life-threatening illnesses, working alongside primary treatment teams to provide symptom management, treatment planning support, and goals-of-care conversations. The team works across the hospital — including with ICU patients and patients still receiving aggressive…

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## Transcript

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