Local Physician Testifies at Statehouse
(November 3, 2017 - Sandusky, Ohio) – James E. Preston, DO, program director for the Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship with the Medical Education Program at Firelands Regional Medical Center and senior medical director of Stein Hospice, recently appeared before the Ohio House of Representatives Aging & Long Term Care Committee on behalf of the Ohio Osteopathic Association (OOA) to support palliative care legislation.
HB 286 creates the Palliative Care and Quality of Life Interdisciplinary Council, establishes the Palliative Care Consumer and Professional Information and Education Program, and requires health care facilities to identify patients and residents who could benefit from palliative care.
Preston, a family physician who is certified in palliative care, noted the need for clear definitions in state law given the difference regarding the role of chronic and acute pain management versus hospice and palliative care services.
Dr. Preston was appointed in July 1997 by Ohio University Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine (OUHCOM) as Assistant Dean, Clinical Affairs, NW CORE, and served as the Director of Medical Education at Firelands Regional Medical Center from 1991 to 2008. A graduate of Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences, Active in local, state and national osteopathic education, Dr. Preston became the President of the Association of Osteopathic Directors and Medical Educators in 1997. Dr. Preston began working in hospice in 2005 and became certified in hospice and palliative medicine in 2010. In coordination with Firelands Regional Medical Center and Stein Hospice Services Inc., Dr. Preston developed an AOA-accredited fellowship in Hospice and Palliative Medicine and is its program director.
