Pediatric palliative care: Compass

By Mayo Clinic Staff

Our Compass team

Compass is a multispecialty team that provides palliative care for infants, children and young adults with life-limiting or life-threatening illnesses. Team members include doctors, nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers, chaplains and grief specialists. Compass partners with your child's healthcare team to improve quality of life during serious illness.

Our team is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to manage symptoms, establish goals of care and assist in shared decision-making. The team provides emotional, social and spiritual support as needed. Compass also provides palliative care for families during pregnancy when there are concerns that the baby may have serious or life-threatening conditions.

Conditions treated

Compass experts treat many types of serious or life-threatening conditions in children, including but not limited to:

  • Genetic or metabolic conditions.
  • Seizure conditions.
  • Cancer.
  • Heart disease.
  • Complications of being born too early, a condition called extreme prematurity.

Compass expertise

The Compass team:

  • Supports children and families through medical decisions that are in line with their beliefs and values.
  • Aims to relieve symptoms related to disease or side effects of treatment by using medicines and other methods.
  • Provides emotional, social and spiritual support.
  • Partners with hospice agencies to ensure comfort at end of life.
  • Helps families with grief support if their child dies.
  • Teaches others about Mayo Clinic's palliative care services.

Meet the team

Our experienced team is dedicated to giving the best care to meet the needs of your child and family:

Medical director

  1. Christopher A. Collura, M.D.

Attending physicians

  1. Lezlie H. Andersen, M.D.
  2. Brenda M. Schiltz, M.D., M.A.
  3. Megan J. Thorvilson, M.D.

Nurse practitioner

  1. Melissa Smith, APRN, C.N.P., M.S.N.

Nurses

  1. Amy Crowley, R.N.
  2. Aubrey J. Manahan, R.N., CPN, CHPPN

Chaplain

  1. Zach W. Lovig, MDiv

Social worker

  1. Carolyn R. Mueller, D.S.W., L.I.C.S.W.

To request an appointment

If your child is already a patient at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, please talk with your Mayo Clinic healthcare professional about arranging a referral to the Compass team.