Objectives:

At the conclusion of this activity, the learner should be able to:

• Analyze the pain regimen in a complex cancer-associated pain patient in order to elicit a scholarly discussion regarding various approaches to care.
• Apply and utilize interventional pain procedures (specifically splanchnic nerve blocks and celiac plexus blocks) in the setting of advanced abdominal malignancies.
• Identify the anatomical structures involved in the appropriate location/placement of celiac/splanchnic plexus nerve blocks.
• Recognize the possible side effects/complications of nerve blocks used to treat complex pain in the setting of abdominal malignancies.
• Engage in a scholarly discussion regarding the treatment of a complex cancer associated pain patient with an advanced abdominal malignancy.

Bio:

Kari Williams is a board-certified Adult Health and Acute Care Nurse Practitioner. She performed her undergraduate work at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she obtained her bachelor’s degree in Nursing in 2001. She then went on to receive her Master of Science in Nursing from Arizona State University in 2005. She has worked in many aspects of healthcare over the years, first as a bedside ICU nurse, followed by two years in a Pulmonary Medicine practice, and then chose to spend the next fifteen years in Hospital Internal Medicine at Mayo Clinic Arizona. Finally, in March 2022, she decided to pursue her longtime passion for working in the Palliative care realm and joined the Palliative Medicine team. Through her years at Mayo, she has led the nurse practitioner student mentorship program for Hospital Internal Medicine, lectured at various conferences on Internal Medicine topics and sat on various committees throughout the Mayo institution. Outside of work, she loves to travel, spend quality time with her family, and ride her Peloton bike.