Ms Anu Savio Thelly & Ms R S Sheeba from India are among the “pioneering Nurses from around the world”, featured by St. Christopher’s Hospice.
In this program St. Christopher’s Hospice, UK showcases 30 pioneering nurses from around the world. They are nurses who are shaping the face of end of life care at a local, national and international level.
Ms. Anu Savio Thelly:
Anu has been working in the field of Palliative Care since 2011. In 2013, Anu became the lead for nursing services for a hospice in Chennai, Tamil nadu. In one year, she has upgraded the centre as a training centre for Certificate Course in Essentials of Palliative Care, a National Training Program for Doctors and Nurses launched by Indian Association of Palliative Care. She was also successful in making a club for hospice volunteers.
She moved to Pondicherry in 2014 to set up palliative home care services for Sanjeevan Palliative Care program under the mentorship of Dr Suresh Kumar. Two years later in 2016, she was appointed to the Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute to set up the first palliative care multidisciplinary team and together opened inpatient facilities and a pain clinic.
Additionally, Anu started a certified training program in palliative care in the state, in association with the Indian Association of Palliative Care. The university has since drafted modules to integrate palliative care into the medical, dental and nursing curriculum, which is celebrated as a significant step in the recognition of how palliative care can be integrated into all disciplines. Anu has also worked tirelessly to address the needs and specific challenges of the usually ignored LGBTQI population, as well as extending services to children.
Sheeba R S
Sheeba is working as the training coordinator at Trivandrum Institute of Palliative Sciences, which is the training wing of Pallium India Trust, and now a World Health Organisation (WHO) Collaborating Centre. Here they offer various courses in palliative care for doctors, nurses, social workers, health care workers and volunteers. In her role as training co-ordinator, Sheeba emphasises the need of palliative care training in budding nurses and doctors of India.
Sheeba’s journey in Palliative Care starts from the Department of Palliative Care at Regional Cancer Centre (RCC), Thiruvananthapuram. As a trained nurse, she was appointed in the Department of Palliative Care at RCC. One of the Palliative care Physicians from a RCC (Regional Cancer Centre) encouraged her to attend a Palliative Care foundation course at Amritha Institute of Medical Sciences, Kochi, Kerala. During this training, she got the opportunity to meet Dr. M R. Rajagopal, founder of Pallium India. Inspired by him, in 2006 she started work at Pallium India (headed by Dr.M.R.Rajagopal) as a palliative care nurse.
To read Sheeba’s story, please follow this link
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