Michael Paletta, MD
Corporate Medical Director

As Corporate Medical Director for Hospice of Michigan, Michael J. Paletta, M.D. provides medical oversight for the statewide organization and provides consultation to physicians who refer patients to the organization, which provides end-of-life services for approximately 850 patients each day in 45 counties around the state. He is a distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine.

As a full-time hospice physician since joining HOM as Medical Director in 1997, Dr. Paletta is involved in palliative care research and education. He was a co-investigator in the Palliative Excellence in Alzheimer's Care Efforts (PEACE) Project, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which investigated the benefits of palliative care for patients in the advanced stages of dementia.

Before coming to Hospice of Michigan, Dr. Paletta spent eight years with the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, serving as senior staff physician in geriatric medicine and Director of Geriatrics for the Northwest Region. He served for a time as medical director for the HFHS-West Bloomfield hospice team.

Dr. Paletta is a graduate of Wayne State University School of Medicine in Detroit. Residency at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak led to Board Certification in Internal Medicine, after which he was awarded fellowship in Geriatric Medicine at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, acquiring certification in Geriatrics in 1990.

A parallel military career in the reserve forces has included training at the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine and an aeronautical rating of Chief Flight Surgeon. He has logged operational flying hours in a variety of fighter and attack aircraft and has commanded military medical detachments in Europe and Central America. He currently serves Surgeon General for the Michigan Air National Guard, headquartered in Lansing. Decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Air Force Achievement Award, the Outstanding Unit Citation and the National Defense Ribbon.

Dr. Paletta serves on the Michigan State Medical Society's Hospice Medical Directors Committee and Pain Management Task Force. He lives in Northville, MI, with his wife Cheryl and two sons.