The purpose of this project is to develop a conversational agent system that counsels terminally ill patients in order to alleviate their suffering and improve their quality of life.
Although many interventions have now been developed to address palliative care for specific chronic diseases, little has been done to address the overall quality of life for older adults with serious illness, spanning not only the functional aspects of symptom and medication management, but the affective aspects of suffering. In this project, we are developing a relational agent to counsel patients at home about medication adherence, stress management, advanced care planning, and spiritual support, and to provide referrals to palliative care services when needed.