Palliative Medicine is a comprehensive medical practice that includes the study and supervision of subjects with rapidly progressive, far-advanced illness, for whom the prognosis is short and the intentions and focus are on the alleviation of symptoms and quality of life. The salient highlights of Palliative Medicine are, identification and easing of distress, recognition, and relief of psychosocial misery, comprising care and assistance for families and caregivers, recognition and relief of spiritual/existential suffering, the realization of the end of life care need, and procurement of end of life care and grief aid post-demise. Palliative Medicine is relevant to all possibly terminal ailments such as cancer, end-stage organ failure, HIV/AIDS, etc. Palliative Medicine has to be utilized early and should be blended with all wellness assistance programs. The unavailability of a palliative care practitioner during advanced degrees of painful disorders like cancer can crush the subject in pain, changing his final few crucial days into a living hell. Unfortunately, there is a total shortage of doctors trained in palliative care. With the government and WHO giving importance to making palliative medicine more mainstream, the opportunities abound.

MD in Palliative Medicine involves 2 years of Core Training in Palliative medicine and 1 year of concentrated experience in fields like general medicine and cancer medicine. The target of this training curriculum is to equip the student with competency-based education in symptom control, supportive care, recognition of an array of medical options possible for the illness management of palliative care patients, counseling support to those affected, etc.  The course equips students to manage pain and other symptoms using proper clinical evaluation methods, clarify the role of emotional and existential concerns in sickness considering the social and cultural context of the subject and families. It aids the student in recognizing the terminal phase, end-of-life needs, and engage in effective communication with the family. It enables the student to mentor and oversee junior doctors, sustain interest in academics, and show a high level of tutelage. Palliative care practitioners undertake research, handle observational studies, and clinical reports. At the fulfillment of MD in Palliative Medicine, as outlined by the curriculum, it is expected that the practitioner will have gained expertise, perspective, and clinical abilities required for an able palliative medicine practice. The curriculum sketches the comprehensive ideas, learning goals, technical knowledge (cognitive domain), clinical abilities (psychomotor domain) and attitudes and conduct (affective domain) expected to become a specialist Palliative Medicine Physician. Sections of the study include an introduction to palliative medicine, palliative pharmacology, symptom control in palliative medicine, palliative medicine in oncology and non-oncology setting, supportive care in palliative medicine, psychosocial issues in palliative medicine, pediatric and geriatric palliative medicine, special topics in palliative medicine, nursing and rehabilitative care, etc. 

MD in Palliative medicine is a 3-year full-time course whose eligibility criterion is to have completed MBBS from a university recognized by the Medical Council of India (MCI) as specified by Govt. of India.  Applicants must have completed the required period of 1-year compulsory rotating internship. A few government institutes also have entrance examinations for the same.  Palliative medicine professionals may work in hospitals, in the community, and in specialist palliative care facilities. The curriculum describes the competencies required to obtain a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT) and to be listed on the Specialist Register in Palliative Medicine. A doctor with a CCT in Palliative Medicine will be able to work as a consultant within the National Health Service and charitable sector and will have the expertise, skills, and dispositions required to do this.