Katherine I. Pettus, PhD
IAHPC Senior Advocacy & Partnerships Director
IAHPC observed the International Day of Peace by presenting a moderated international, interfaith panel discussion on the question, “Is peace in serious health-related suffering and at end of life possible?” The three panelists, all seasoned members of interdisciplinary palliative care teams, agreed that peace at the end of life is possible, given compassionate accompaniment and the support of trained spiritual care practitioners.
Panelists Imam Mohammed Asad and Father John Damascene Rurangwa noted that in Islam and Christianity, death is not considered "the end," but a transition to another, more joyful, life. All speakers emphasized the fact that peoples’ last journeys, no matter their faith or lack thereof, present a "golden opportunity" to connect or reconnect with God and with loved ones, including those who may already have passed over. There was also consensus that it is challenging for people to find peace if they are experiencing severe pain.
Interest in the topic was high, with 327 people registered and 125 attending. Dr. Dingle Spence, former IAHPC board member and president elect of CARIPALCA, moderated the discussion between Imam Asad of Birmingham Central Mosque in the UK; Father Rurangwa of St. Joseph’s Hospice in Zambia, and Professor Cristina Grisham Montanez, a certified pastoral counselor formerly of Hospice of the North Coast in the USA.
The rich and informative discussion can be viewed on YouTube. We are planning a second interfaith discussion between representatives of the Jewish, Hindu, and Buddhist faiths on Sunday, February 11, 2024, World Day of the Sick. You can read my reflections on the topic here.
After the publication of its report, Left Behind in Pain, in September the World Health Organization hosted three global webinars on one topic: access to medical morphine. The purpose of the webinars was "to facilitate discussion and reflections by leading experts on their endeavors to transform clinical services and policy landscape to ensure safe access to morphine and other strong opioids." Access all of the recorded webinars.
The United Nations' General Assembly session in New York included special sessions on universal health coverage, tuberculosis, and pandemic preparedness and response. Political declarations on all three were approved, although in a contentious political atmosphere. Health systems and disparities researcher Dr. Afsan Bhadelia represented the IAHPC, attending plenary and side sessions and raising the issue of palliative care wherever it was relevant. (See Dr. Bhadelia's Special Advocacy Report.)
The Political Declaration of the High-Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage, titled “Universal Health Coverage: expanding our ambition for health and well-being in a post-COVID world,” mentions palliative care five times as part of the spectrum of essential services, and updates the 2018 declaration. IAHPC cosponsored a side event on access to medicines with the Union of International Cancer Control and the Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance, among other partners.
Advocacy tip: Send a copy of the declaration to your Ministry of Health contact, and include a description of your work in the country, thereby identifying yourself as an implementation partner! As always, feel free to e-mail me your questions or comments.
As mentioned in earlier posts, the UN General Assembly approved a resolution designating October 29 International Day of Care and Support. IAHPC is planning a webinar on caregiving in support of World Hospice and Palliative Care Day. World Day is on October 14: the theme is Compassionate Communities. Stay tuned for announcements in your inbox as well as on social media.
As former US First Lady Rosalynn Carter told the Senate Special Committee on Aging, “there are only four kinds of people in the world: those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers.”
The number of people needing care is fast outstripping the available and projected number of both paid and "informal" caregivers, creating an urgent need for better training, policies, and community care. The panel will bring perspectives from members in different regions of the world to discuss how IAHPC might best support caregivers to advance our vision of a world free from health-related suffering.
Readers of this column may remember that we showed Dr. Jessica Zitter’s film Caregiver: A Love Story in 2021. You can learn more about the film on this Geripal podcast with Zitter.
Editor's note: This issue includes the first of a two-part featured story on caregiving, by communications expert Barry Ashpole. For a personal perspective on caregiving, read A Patient's Story, also in this issue.
On October 1, International Day of Older Persons, IAHPC advocated for: disaggregated data collection on serious health-related suffering experienced by older persons and their caregivers; the growing need for palliative care, including for dementia, in that population; and the related urgency of integrating palliative care into staff training at care homes and assisted-living facilities.
IAHPC participates in the Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing at the United Nations in New York and advocates for the rights of older persons to palliative care at the Human Rights Council and with Special Procedures in Geneva. According to the 2020 Global Atlas of Palliative Care, people aged 70 years and older account for 40% of patients in need of palliative care worldwide. The need is expected to increase dramatically in the coming years, given the growth of noncommunicable diseases.
The Africa Small Grants program, funded by The True Colours Trust, provides grants to hospices and palliative care providers across Africa to support the development of palliative care. Applications are reviewed by a panel of experts who make recommendations on the best and most impactful projects for funding. The African Palliative Care Association oversees the application process and administers the grants.
Funding is primarily for one-off projects with a duration of no more than one year. The grants range from £500 to £5,000; up to 15% of the grant may be used for general running costs/administration. See guidelines, more information, and how to apply.
Previous page Table of contents Next page
This newsletter, including (but not limited to) all written material, images, photos are protected under international copyright laws and are property of the IAHPC. You may share the IAHPC newsletter preserving the original design, the IAHPC logo, and the link to the IAHPC website, but you are not allowed to reproduce, modify, or republish any material without prior written permission from the IAHPC.