Middlebury—Dr. Diana Barnard, a palliative care physician and long-time member of the Addison County medical community who works at both Porter Medical Center and the UVM Medical Center, has been awarded the UVM Health Network Home Health & Hospice Madison-Deane Award for Excellence in End-of-Life Care. This annual award is given by the Madison-Deane Education Fund, formerly the Madison-Deane Initiative (MDI), which is the educational arm of the UVM Health Network Home Health & Hospice’s Hospice and Palliative Care Program.
According to the MDI website, this award is given annually by the Madison-Deane Initiative to a Vermont individual, group or organization who “exemplifies the original mission and vision of MDI, thereby continuing the legacy of Drs. Madison and Deane and their original intent. Dr. Madison wanted to see physicians educated about pain assessment and control, and Dr. Deane wanted to see education about advance directives and hospice and palliative care, so as to prevent unnecessary suffering for patients at the end of life.”
“We are so pleased to learn of this well-deserved award, and deeply grateful to Dr. Barnard for the specialized and invaluable work she does here at Porter to provide palliative and end-of-life services to the people of our community,” said UVMHN Porter Medical Center President Seleem Choudhury. “Diana exemplifies our mission of caring for our community, one person at a time.”
The mission of the Madison-Deane Education Fund (MDEF) is to improve end-of-life care through inspiration, education, and collaboration in the following ways: “Be a catalyst for the acceptance of death as a natural part of life. Be a leader for education, information, and resources relevant to end-of-life issues. Support those who create and encourage dialogue about how individuals and families face life-threatening illness.”
About The University of Vermont Health Network
The University of Vermont Health Network is an academic health system that is comprised of six affiliate hospitals, a multi-specialty medical group, and a home health agency. We serve the residents of Vermont and northern New York with a shared mission: working together, we improve people’s lives. Our partners include:
- The University of Vermont Medical Center
- The University of Vermont Health Network Medical Group
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Alice Hyde Medical Center
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Central Vermont Medical Center
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Elizabethtown Community Hospital
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Porter Medical Center
- The University of Vermont Health Network – Home Health and Hospice
Our 4,000 health care professionals are driven to provide high quality, cost-efficient care as close to home as possible. Strengthened by our academic connection to the University of Vermont, each of our hospitals remains committed to its local community by providing compassionate, personal care shaped by the latest medical advances and delivered by highly skilled experts.