Traveling Scholars Program Report
Natalia Carafizi
Travel date: May 23, 2019
Name of Meeting/Event/Activity: 16th World Congress of the European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC)
Origin: Chisinau, Moldova / Destination: Berlin, Germany
How was this meeting/activity helpful to you?
At the Congress I have presented the poster P02-416 entitled “Initiating the Development of Palliative Care Service in Transnistria”, which describes the activities, related to the development of palliative care through all the regions of Moldova, even those with the existed political and economical particularities. It was also very honorable to me to take part in the pre-Congress meeting, organized by PACED, which first time in the history of the EAPC Congresses took place and aimed the unification of the ex-USSR countries, where the current status of palliative care in each country apart was discussed, alongside with the existed barriers and options to overcome them. The presented at the Congress scientific information was quite modern either to be implemented into the daily clinical practice together with colleagues, to be shared with the local National Association for Palliative Care to use for development of further strategies or to be taken into account while improving medical curricula for both medical students and nurses.
How will you new knowledge & acquired skills help in furthering your work in hospice and palliative care in your program/city/ or country?
The most interesting I have found issues about further development of pediatric palliative care, which is still neglected at the official level, integration of palliative care into other disciplines, like oncology, for instance, and developing modern educational curricula for medical students and nurses. The gained information will be presented at the coming meeting of the local National Association of Palliative Care in order to improve the developing Palliative Care strategy, existed curricula on palliative care at the medical university and medical colleges and to continue developing integration of palliative care in such medical disciplines as oncology, neurology and family medicine.
How IAHPC Traveling Scholars Program be improved in order to help other future traveling scholars?
I’m enormously grateful to the IAHPC for the current format of the Traveling Scholarship of paying in advance the costs, rather than to reimburse the expenditures on site; but nevertheless, I would offer to add some money for the hotel coverage, which sometimes can make 50% of the total travel expenses, even staying in very modest conditions, not of a 5-star hotel.
Narrative summary highlighting the needs and challanges you face
I am most grateful to the IAHPC for the provided Travel Scholarship to attend the 16-th World Congress of the European Association for Palliative Care held in Berlin, Germany on May 23 – 25, 2019. It allowed me to present the poster entitled “Initiating the Development of Palliative Care Service in Transnistria”, which describes the activities, related to the development of palliative care through all the regions of Moldova, even those with the existed political and economical particularities. I also felt very honorable to take part in the pre-Congress PACED session, which first time in the history of the EAPC Congresses took place and aimed the unification of the ex-USSR countries, where the current status of palliative care in each country apart was discussed, alongside with the existed barriers and options to overcome them.
The presented at the Congress scientific information was quite modern, either to be implemented into the daily clinical practice together with colleagues, to be shared with the local National Association for Palliative Care to use for development of further strategies or to be taken into account while improving medical curricula for both medical students and nurses.