This course focuses on problems and issues that occur on the trajectories of serious illnesses. Guided by current theories of psychosocial care and human development, the course will address serious physical and mental illnesses, with attention to multiple coexisting conditions (e.g. end stage renal disease [ESRD], cancer, Alzheimer's disease, serious and persistent mental illness [SPMI], disabilities). Guided by a life course perspective, the curriculum will focus on serious illness care for people of all ages and ethnicities with specific attention to culturally competent care. The course will focus on the provision of care to people who are seriously ill and their families in varied practice settings (e.g. community, primary, acute, emergency and long-term care programs). The course will address policy-guided practice by considering how policies influence access to resources and services thus informing the lived experience of serious illness. The course will introduce assessment tools and evidence-based interventions (e.g. the Serious Illness Conversation Guide) for person-centered care and communication with people who have differential types of illnesses. The course will incorporate a trauma-informed and human rights perspective to social work practice with people who are seriously ill and their families.