Authors: Rizwana Hussain, Dr Megan Doherty and Dr Spandana Rayala
More than 21 million children worldwide require palliative care each year, yet access to specialist level pediatric palliative care remains limited across South and Southeast Asia. To help address this gap, Two Worlds Cancer Collaboration and the Hyderabad Centre for Palliative Care have launched a one year specialist Fellowship in Pediatric Palliative Medicine aimed at developing future leaders in children’s palliative care across the region.
The 1 Year Fellowship in Pediatric Palliative Medicine, endorsed by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health in the United Kingdom, is now open for applications for its January 2027 intake.
About the Fellowship
The Pediatric Palliative Medicine Fellowship Program is a one year specialist training programme for doctors, developed through a collaboration between the Sunflower Children’s Network, a Two Worlds Cancer Collaboration initiative, and the Hyderabad Centre for Palliative Care.
The fellowship offers a combined virtual and clinical training model designed to equip physicians with the medical knowledge, clinical skills, and professional attitudes needed to provide high quality palliative care for children living with life threatening or life limiting conditions, while also supporting their families throughout the care journey.
Key features of the fellowship include:
- Two months of clinical palliative care rotations at a regional Centre of Excellence
- Two months of clinical training in the fellow’s home country
- Specialist level teaching from a diverse faculty of national and international experts
- International mentorship to complete a research or quality improvement project
- Networking and collaboration opportunities with pediatric palliative medicine specialists across South and Southeast Asia
The fellowship’s vision is to deliver high quality specialist training that equips physicians to become future leaders in children’s palliative care across South and Southeast Asia.
Who Should Apply?
The program is open to physicians holding a postgraduate specialist degree, with preference given
to those qualified in Paediatrics.
Please note that this fellowship is exclusively available to physicians based in South and Southeast Asia. Applications from other regions will not be considered.
Key Dates
| Milestone | Date |
| Application deadline | July 1, 2026 |
| Interview invitations sent | July 10, 2026 |
| Interviews | August 15–25, 2026 |
| Results announced | September 10, 2026 |
| Fellowship begins | January 4, 2027 |
The course fee is $1,000 USD. Scholarship opportunities are available for candidates experiencing financial hardship, and a separate scholarship application form is available upon request.
The Fellowship Prospectus and Application Form can be downloaded here.
For further enquiries, please contact Ms. Rizwana Hussain, Programs Project Manager: programsprojectmanager@twoworldscancer.ca
Palliative care for children seeks to assess and relieve physical, psychosocial, and spiritual suffering, with a focus on improving quality of life for both the child and their family. This fellowship represents an important step toward expanding access to specialist children’s palliative care across South and Southeast Asia.
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