Palliative Care Studies indicate that most patients and families who are living with a life-threatening illness can expect to experience multiple physical, psychological, social, spiritual and practical issues - often concurrently. Most of these problems add to a patient's and family's sense of suffering and reduce their quality of life significantly. However, until recently, formal education in end-of-life care has been absent from medical school and residency training. A survey sponsored by the American Medical Association (AMA) showed that only 4 of 126 U.S. medical schools required a course on care of the dying. In response to this situation, the American Medical Association (AMA) is now bringing more focus to physician training on end-of-life care. Palliative care programs and consultative services are rapidly spreading across the United States to provide expertise and standards of practice to patients who need symptom control and supportive care earlier in their illness. Palliative care is defined as the study and management of patients with progressive diseases for whom the prognosis is limited. Quality of life is the chief aim. Palliative care may be initiated and continued for weeks, months or even years before hospice becomes appropriate. Life's Doors Hospice has certified trainers for the AMA's “Education for Physicians on End-of-life-Care” program. Through 4 plenary presentations and 12 modules, EPEC covers the range of decision-making situations, approaches to manage the most frequently occurring symptoms, and the basic concepts of interdisciplinary supportive care that any physician in general practice will face. In the end, the AMA hopes that EPEC will encourage physicians to rediscover some of the core values of their profession and foster creative approaches to advocate for, and create, change in the myriad of situations and places in which physicians serve dying Americans.