Dr. C. Bree Johnston has been hired to lead the new PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center palliative care program. Johnston, who is board certified in internal medicine, hospice and palliative care, and geriatrics, will join PeaceHealth Medical Group in late September.

The new hospital-based palliative care program will be delivered by an interdisciplinary team, comprised of Johnston, a chaplain and a social worker. The team approach will help ensure that care is coordinated and holistic, to address all of a patient’s physical, psychological, spiritual and practical needs.

Palliative care is specialized medical care for people with serious illness. This type of care is focused on providing patients with relief from the symptoms, pain and stress of a serious illness, regardless of the diagnosis. The goal is to improve quality of life for both the patient and his or her family. The palliative care team works with a patient’s other doctors to provide an extra layer of support.

Johnston most recently served as professor of clinical medicine at the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF), a preeminent medical teaching center. During her tenure at UCSF, Johnston led the geriatrics fellowship program and served as associate chief for education in the division of geriatrics. She will accept referrals for palliative care consultations for hospitalized patients starting in October.