Hospice & Palliative Medicine
Our Passion is to train phenomenal physicians to provide compassionate, whole-person hospice and palliative medicine care.
The Waco Family Medicine – HPM Fellowship delivers care to pediatric, adult, and geriatric patients from a variety of medical, cultural, religious, and socioeconomic backgrounds. We train in multiple settings, including inpatient, outpatient, nursing home, and patients’ homes. And we provide comprehensive assessment and management of patients’ suffering and quality of life, with particular attention to their physical, functional, social, psychological, spiritual, and cognitive domains.
Structure
- One year, ACGME-approved fellowship
- Emphasis on graduates of primary care residencies—family medicine, internal medicine, and pediatrics
- Competitive PGY-4 salary and benefits
Curriculum and Clinical Experience
- Didactics
- Inpatient Palliative Consult Service
- Inpatient Hospice
- Home Hospice
- Pediatric and Perinatal Experiences
- Long-Term Care
- Outpatient Palliative Care Clinic
- Ethics
- Electives
- Scholarly Project
Collaborations
Waco Family Medicine
A federally qualified health center caring for nearly 62,000 patients in McLennan County.
Baylor Scott & White – Hillcrest Hospital
A 236-bed community-based hospital and level 2 trauma center with 24 adult intensive care unit beds and 20 neonatal intensive care unit beds.
Community Health Care of Texas
The largest nonprofit, Medicare-certified hospice in Texas with an eight-bed inpatient hospice unit.
Baylor University
A private Christian university and nationally ranked research institution with a premiere Medical Humanities program.
Faculty & Educators
Interdisciplinary teams including social workers, advanced practice providers, nursing staff, chaplains, and pharmacists
Paul Smith, DO
Fellowship DirectorBoard Certified in Family Medicine, Geriatric Medicine, and Hospice and Palliative Medicine
Joshua Wesley, MD HDMC
Associate Fellowship DirectorBoard Certified in Family Medicine
Certified Hospice Medical Director
Katie Altahif, MD
FacultyBoard Certified in Family Medicine
Board Eligible in Hospice and Palliative Medicine
Kindra Dursteler, MD
FacultyBoard Certified in Internal Medicine
Board Eligible in Hospice and Palliative Medicine
Devyn Stahl, PhD, MDiv
FacultyClinical Bioethicist, Baylor University
Zach Sartor, MD
FacultyBoard Certified in Family Medicine
Research and Quality Improvement
Lance Kelley, PhD
FacultyPrimary Care Psychologist, Waco Family Medicine
Interdisciplinary Teams
Including social workers, advanced practice providers, nursing staff, chaplains, and pharmacists
Current Fellows