The Jordan Pain Relief and Palliative Care Initiative, JPRPCI, was initiated with the support of a persistent and visionary philanthropist. Dr Jan Stjernswärd negotiated with the Ministry of Health and the WHO to develop a public health approach to palliative care that introduces the WHO foundation measures of Education, Drug availability and supporting policies that will reach all sufferers in a cost effective manner.

In August 2003, a Ministry of Health/WHO Workshop was held and attended by leading national policy makers and clinicians who agreed to establish a National Programme/Initiative. Detailed recommendations and an action plan were established. A national Committee lead by Samir Khleif, Director, King Hussein Cancer Centre, KHCC, has since been addressing policies, drug availability issues and educational issues.

Already there has been changes in opioid prescribing policies and nationally produced inexpensive generics of immediate release morphine, IRM, and slow release morphine tablets, SRM, are about to come to market. It is estimated that there will be an 80 per cent increase in morphine use when these drugs are available.

All medical and nursing schools have committed themselves to introduce palliative care into their undergraduate curricula. A series of 6 educational courses in palliative care, supported by an International Faculty, that will include bedside practice have been budgeted for the coming 3 years,

Policies were reviewed and the first educational course was conducted and  followed by bedside teaching. The next course is to be held in September 2004 for future trainers of the trainer which was planned together with Jan Stjernswärd, MD, PhD, Sweden and Oxford,  Frank Ferris MD and Gerry Graham MD, both from San Diego Hospice, USA and  Mary Wheeler, MSN, CHPN, The Hospices of the National Capital Region, Washington, USA. The latter three individuals conducted the first intensive palliative care course at KHCC, Amman, based on the EPEC and ELNEC curricula. This course combined classroom presentations with bedside mentorship for 30 nurses and doctors from six leading medical services.

JPRPCI is a WHO Demonstration Project for the Middle East Region and was considered a model reference resource, at a recently held NCI/NIH (USA) international workshop.