Date published: August 29, 2024
September Fellow Spotlight: Philip Hewes, MD
In this month’s Fellow Spotlight, we feature Philip Hewes, MD, a Hospice and Palliative Medicine fellow at UMass Chan. We recently caught up with Dr. Hewes to learn more about his clinical and research interests, why he chose UMass for his fellowship, and why northern California is his favorite place to travel!
Hometown?
North Potomac, Maryland
What are your clinical and research interests?
Palliative medicine is at an exciting time when there is greater and earlier collaboration in the care of the whole person with a serious illness and their loved ones. I’m interested in how we can continue to encourage the development and expression of the humanism we have as clinicians, to further this care. Clinically, I find it meaningful to address total pain, breathlessness, and the palliative care of underserved populations. From a research perspective, I’m interested in clinical outcomes related to palliative intervention – how do we consistently give the highest quality of life throughout the continuity of serious illness? How well are we doing? How can we continue to build upon generalizable standards of care?
Why did you choose UMass Chan for your fellowship?
I was drawn to UMass’ work providing care to underserved populations and the Central Massachusetts community. From my first interactions, it was clear that the division is dedicated to providing compassionate, empathetic, and comprehensive palliative care. The energy is infectious!
Are you involved in any other groups or activities at UMass Chan that you’d like to highlight?
Not currently, but I am interested in future involvement in quality improvement.
Where is your favorite place to travel for vacation and why?
Northern California, particularly in spring. If you time it right, California poppies cover the hills with orange.
Who is your favorite author?
Kim Stanley Robinson. The Mars trilogy is an absolute treasure of hard/speculative science fiction, and I cannot recommend it enough!