World hospice and palliative care news roundup – 31 March 2015

Categories: In The Media.

Syringe driver exchange programme

APHPCN

With the phasing out of Graseby syringe drivers in Australia and the introduction of alternatives, significant numbers of these useful devices could be made available for palliative care services in the region. The Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network introduce their syringe driver exchange programme.

All hospitals must have pain relief and palliative care – demand doctors in Dayananad Medical College with Pallium India

India – The Nation Leader

The Department of Medical Oncology and Anesthesia at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital organized a two day education course for MBBS students on basics of pain and palliative care.  

“Why is it hard to get pain control pills in India?”

Outlook India

Economic progress happens when you give young people freedom. When they follow opportunity, there is no plan for the ageing parents left behind. Soutik Biswas interviews Atul Gawande.

‘Palliative care’ service for cancer patients in Cancer Institute soon

The Times of India

Cancer is the leading cause of death in the country. In Kanpur city alone 10,000 new cancer patients are registered every year in JK Cancer Institute of LLR hospital. To cater such patients, the cancer institute has taken a step forward and has decided to start with the ‘palliative care’ for the terminally-ill patients. 

Even NGOs can work on palliative care for terminally ill patients

The Times of India

Palliative care can go a long way in ensuring a decent living and can help uplift the patients’ image in society. However, what raises a concern is the insufficient number of such care units in Punjab. 

Half-way home for paraplegic patients

Pallium India

A model halfway home project for paraplegic patients was opened in Trivandrum Institute of Palliative Sciences (TIPS), Arumana Hospital, on the 24th of March 2015. Funded by Department of Social Justice, Kerala, the project will house four paraplegic patients in a month, who have completed their acute care already.

Ten years of palliative care Miri

The Borneo Post

The Palliative Care Association Miri (PCAM) is a non-governmental organisation set up 10 years ago by Dr Mieke van de Leemput from Holland and some of her friends.

Landmark in caring

In-Cyprus

The Friends’ Hospice Paphos has just registered its 1,000th admission, a landmark for palliative care in the region. The facility offers its services, free of charge, to people of every nationality, regardless of their ability to pay.

Odds of reversing ICU patients’ preferences to forgo life-sustaining care vary, study finds

US – Medical Xpress

Intensive care units across the United States vary widely in how they manage the care of patients who have set pre-existing limits on life-sustaining therapies, such as authorizing do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders and prohibiting interventions such as feeding tubes or dialysis, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

The health care cost of dying: a population-based retrospective cohort study of the last year of life in Ontario, Canada

Canada – Plos One

Coordinated and appropriate health care across sectors is an ongoing challenge, especially at the end of life. Population-level data on end of life health care use and cost, however, are seldom reported across a comprehensive array of sectors. Such data will identify the level of care being provided and areas where care can be optimized.

NHPCO participates in IOM ‘Dying in America’ national action conference

US – PR Newswire

At a recent National Action Conference hosted by the Institute of Medicine held in Washington, DC, NHPCO wholeheartedly voiced its support for the findings and recommendations of the comprehensive IOM report that highlights the critical need for improvement in end-of-life care in America

Early palliative care improves survival in advanced cancer

US – Medical Xpress

Early initiation of palliative care interventions improves survival and caregiver burden in advanced cancer, according to two studies published online on March 23 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Cost disparities exist among pediatric palliative care patients

US – Healio

The cost of inpatient pediatric palliative care was lower among patients who were near death compared with survivors, according to a recently published study in Pediatrics.

Dementia: turning fine aspirations into measurable progress

The Lancet

WHO Director-General Margaret Chan spoke in support of people with dementia at the first Ministerial Conference on Global Action Against Dementia, hosted by WHO, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and the UK Department of Health in Geneva on March 16–17.

Hospice staff – the heroes of palliative care provision: a day in the life of Nairobi Hospice Day Care activities

ehospice Kenya

Thursdays are a special day at the Nairobi Hospice in the Kenyan capital. It is the day set aside for day care for the patients to meet at the institution to share experiences and talk with the staff. It is a much needed change of environment for patients.

Launch of new resource to help hospices meet the dementia challenge

ehospice UK

Last Friday saw the launch of important new guidance for hospices, describing how they can best meet local and national demands for care for people affected by a diagnosis of dementia.

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