Volume 23, Number 5: May 2022
IAHPC Institutional Recognition Award Winners
Congratulations to IAHPC’s 2022 Institutional Recognition Award winners: Hospice Africa Uganda (low-income country category), Pallium India (middle-income), and Australia’s Anam Cara House Colac (high-income).
The award celebrates institutions dedicated to developing and providing palliative care to improve the quality of life of patients with serious health-related suffering. “We had some excellent institutional candidates and the task to select the winners was very challenging,” says IAHPC Executive Director Liliana De Lima. Each winner was awarded $1,000 USD and a one-year free membership.
The entries were assessed by a panel of judges culled from IAHPC’s Board of Directors: Harmala Gupta, Eve Namisango, Steven Radwany, and Roberto Wenk.
“These examples are both amazing and encouraging,” says Dr. Wenk. “They show how different institutions, from countries with different economic status, have managed to establish effective palliative care services. It is true that there are some structural and functional differences between them, but I am sure that over time they will level out. Congratulations to you all.”
Little Hospice Hoima and Mobile Hospice Mbarara were added in 1998. Photos used with permission.
Low-income country category
Hospice Africa Uganda has an “excellent focus on education and staff development,” says Dr. Radwany, adding that it displays “resourceful efforts in making morphine available to their patients.”
It began with two people in 1993, and now boasts a large staff (80!) and volunteers. It has cared for 35,000 patients regardless of gender, ethnicity, religion, political, or socioeconomic status. As the clinical headquarters of its pan-African operation, Hospice Africa Uganda has also been instrumental in educating palliative health care workers both in the country and on the continent.
“Hospice Africa Uganda is a pioneer in Africa that has slowly but surely built a model of palliative care that is impactful and worthy of emulation,” says Ms. Gupta.
Anne Merriman, instrumental in establishing the institution, says, “This is a wonderful confirmation for all the work in moving forward with our vision of ‘Palliative care for all in need in Africa.’ It is also a huge encouragement for our team.”
Middle-income country category
Pallium India is “an acknowledged trailblazer in education, research, and advocacy in India,” says Ms. Gupta. “It [also] does wonderful work in outreach and patient care,” adds Dr. Radwany.
Pallium India's vision is to ensure that all people with serious health-related suffering in India have access to palliative care. Since 2003, it has demonstrated quality care through the Trivandrum Institute of Palliative Sciences with a “Demonstrate, Educate, and Facilitate” model.
The Pallium India team. Photo used with permisson.
It demonstrates quality palliative care delivery through home care, telehealth, inpatient and outpatient services, and engaging with local communities. It has trained more than 4,000 health care workers and other stakeholders from across the country in palliative care. It facilitates the provision of palliative care in India through collaboration with governments, NGOs, private organizations, and communities for developing Palliative Care Centres (PCC): Pallium India has acted as a catalyst for 50 palliative care centers outside of Kerala.
Photo used with permission.
High-income country category
Anam Cara House Colac is an “excellent local care organization with a great educational focus,” says Dr. Radwany. Ms. Gupta adds that, “The respite care it offers patients and their caregivers is meaningful and of the highest quality: it is a boon to the community.”
Located on spacious grounds in a tranquil, rural setting of South West Victoria, Anam Cara House Colac offers in-house respite and short-term care for those in the community with a long-term or life-limiting illness, as well as in-home respite care. Its mission is to embrace respect and compassion for all people while providing excellent care. The small hospice is designed to feel home-like: in addition to its five rooms for patient care, it accommodates carers for those with a loved one nearing the end of life.
The team includes 30 staff—registered nurses, personal care attendants—and an equal number of volunteers.
A small sample of the extensive grounds at Aman Cara House Colac. Photo used with permission.
Advocacy Course Module 5: Ethics of Advocacy for Public Health Palliative Care
Senior Advocacy and Partnerships Director Katherine Pettus is halfway through building IAHPC’s up-to-date Advocacy Course for members. In May, Module 5 was added: Ethics of Advocacy for Public Health Palliative Care.
Dr. Pettus notes in this module that, “Health-related suffering can be relieved by professional intervention, giving us the moral ground for a discussion and advocacy involving ethics. Clinical ethics are patient- and family-based, not population-based.”
The first part outlines the policy context of advocacy ethics, citing supporting documents, decisions, and public health policy strategy.
The second, and largest, part is: Ethos/Ethics & IAHPC Advocacy. Dr. Pettus speaks about justice and injustice (adequate access to care), beneficence (the obligation to act for the patient’s benefit), non-maleficence (the obligation of physicians to not harm the patient), and relational autonomy (independence from others, dependence on others).
It is 38 minutes of listening time that is well spent or, for faster consumption, you can choose to read the PowerPoint presentation, which includes Dr. Pettus’ accompanying comments in writing. As with other modules, a list of resources is included as is a quiz for those aiming to earn course certification.
To have a full grasp of the concepts and terminology, it is recommended to follow the modules in sequence. In addition to Module 5, the course includes:
- Introduction (free access)
- Module 1: Palliative Care: The Institutional Landscape
- Module 2: Access to Essential Medicines: Normative, Historical & Policy context
- Module 3: Advocacy for Access to Essential Medicines
- Module 4: Advocating for the Rights of Older Persons to Palliative Care
10 Scholarships Announced for International Congress
The International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care (IAHPC) is pleased to partner with the McGill international Palliative Care Congress to offer 10 scholarships to support the participation of members in the virtual session of the congress on October 18-21, 2022, in Montreal, Canada.
The application deadline is July 15, 2022. Results will be announced at the beginning of August 2022.
Scholarship applicants from all disciplines are welcome to apply.
Online application forms are available on the IAHPC website (scroll to the bottom of the page, then click on “Apply for an IAHPC Scholarship Program”). You must be, or become, an IAHPC member in order to apply.
May 15, 2022, is the deadline to send your abstract to be considered for the congress.
Apply now! Scholarship grant applications closing soon
IAHPC Scholarships are available for the 7th Public Health Palliative Care International Conference (PHPCI 2022) taking place September 20-23, 2022, in Bruges, Belgium. The deadline has been extended to May 14, 2022.
The deadline is May 31, 2022, for IAHPC Scholarship applications to attend the 7th International African Palliative Care (APCA) Conference held both in-person and as a virtual event August 25-26, 2022 in Kampala, Uganda.
Applicants from all disciplines are encouraged to apply for an IAHPC Scholarship. Online application forms are available on the IAHPC website (scroll to the bottom of the page, then click on “Apply for an IAHPC Scholarship Program”). You must be, or become, an IAHPC member in order to apply.
Reader recommended
I recommend the Lantern Model of nursing, recently launched by St. Christopher’s Hospice, as a valuable resource and the first important update for nursing care in 30 years for palliative care nurses across the globe. A one-year membership (£120, £66 for students) weaves together inspiration, learning, and connections among nurses, who make a real difference to people facing the end of life. [See an overview.]
—Anu Savio Thelly, nurse consultant
Kottayam, India
Great idea: Free hugs!
Hugs free for the taking! Photo supplied by Saskatchewan Health Authority. Used with permission.
It’s a small idea with a big impact. Canadian Nurse and hobby knitter Sharon Ham was inspired by a British nurse giving little knitted hearts to comfort ICU patients cut off from family visits due to COVID-19. Ham picked up her needles in early 2020 to make some for palliative care patients at the hospital in Regina, Saskatchewan, where she worked.
Patients were reminded that they were loved, as a heart was pressed into their hand. Several have told her how comforting their heart was, as a connection to those it represented.
The colorful little “hugs” became in such demand that Ham pressed her daughters into service, and volunteers were sought and secured: one woman in her 80s has knitted thousands!
New Listings
IAHPC Calendar of Events
Argentina
Abordaje del Dolor de Difícil Manejo en Pacientes con Cáncer, Sexta edición 2022. Online course, May 4-June 8, 2022.
Cuidados Paliativos para Enfermería, Segunda Edición 2022. Online course, May 18-October 12, 2022.
Manejo de situaciones complejas en Cuidado Paliativo, Cuarta edición 2022. Online course, August 17-November 2, 2022.
India
Online Foundation Course in Palliative Nursing (FCPN) – ECHO. May 16-July 14, 2022.
Online discussion and readings from Dr. MR Rajagopal’s book, Walk with the Weary. Webinar, May 18, 2022.
30th International Conference of the Indian Association of Palliative Care. In person, February 10-12, 2023.
Bangalore.
UK
Research Methods & Statistics in Palliative Care. Combined in-person and online course,
September 26-October 7, 2022, London.
Rehabilitation in Palliative Care: Contemporary Opportunities. In-person conference, July 1, 2022, London.
Assessment and Management of Symptoms in Advanced Diseases. Combined in-person and online course, November 7-18, 2022, London.
Service Development and Policy in Palliative Care. Combined in-person and online course, April 17-28,
2023, London.
Applying Epidemiology in Palliative Care. In-person and online course, June 26-July 7, 2023, London.
Access all items in the IAHPC Calendar of Events.
IAHPC Global Directory of Educational Programs
Portugal
PhD in Palliative Care, Faculty of Medicine of the University of Porto
Sri Lanka
Postgraduate Diploma in Palliative Medicine, Post Graduate Institute of Medicine (PGIM)
USA
Palliative Care Education and Practice (PCEP), Harvard Medical School Center for Palliative Care
Promote your education and training events in the IAHPC Global Directory of Educational Programs in palliative care. It’s quick and easy—just fill out the Add a new listing page online.
IAHPC Global Directory of Institutions and Organizations
Belgium
Japan
Aomori Prefectural Central Hospital - Palliative Medicine Department
Malawi
Nkhoma Mission Hospital - Chifundo Palliative Care program
USA
Gain visibility by adding your institution, department, or organization that provides palliative or hospice care to the IAHPC Global Directory of Institutions and Organizations. Simply fill out the Add a new listing page online.
Do you have any questions regarding the IAHPC Calendar of Events and IAHPC Directories?
To learn more about Hospice Africa Uganda, Pallium India, Anam Cara House Colac, and St. Christopher’s Hospice visit the IAHPC Global Directory of Palliative Care Institutions and Organizations.
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