World Media Roundup – 1 December 2014

20-bed cancer hospice soon to take off

Barbados Today

A plan to construct a 20-bed hospice in Barbados – the first facility of its kind – is about to take a major step to becoming reality.

Oncology services set to undergo major upgrade in Oman

Times of Oman

A national policy for palliative care in Oman is to be implemented in the very near future, reports Dr Bassim Al Bahrani, director of National Oncology Centre, ahead of the 6th Muscat International Oncology Conference and 3rd Oman Cancer Association Conference.

In Rishikesh, 70-year-old Briton runs hospice center for the poor

The Times of India

Article about the Ganga Hospice Centre and its founder Nani Ma.

One-step screening tool identifies patients needing palliative care

US – Cancer Network

Researchers have developed a one-step screening tool to help oncology providers identify cancer patients with complex palliative care needs who may benefit from referral to a palliative care specialist.

How to make your wishes for end of life care clear

Us – The Wall Street Journal

As acceptance of end of life planning grows in the US, new concerns are emerging about how well patients and their doctors understand the forms they are signing about the care they want in their final days.

Celebrities reveal secrets for Prince Harry’s HIV charity on World Aids Day

The Telegraph

Prince Harry and a number of other celebrities reveal their secrets today, as part of a campaign to help reduce the stigma associated with HIV.

Millions with HIV die for lack of access to Aids drugs, MPs say

The Guardian

Chair of the UK’s all-party parliamentary group on HIV and Aids HIV says failure to get drugs to low and middle-income countries is a “tragedy of epic proportions”.

Ebola crisis: Huge risk of spread – UN’s Tony Banbury

BBC News

The head of the UN Ebola response mission in West Africa has told the BBC there is still a “huge risk” the deadly disease could spread to other parts of the world.

Ebola death toll nears 7,000 as Sierra Leone struggles to contain disease

Aljazeera

In Liberia and Guinea, WHO says infection rates are stabilizing or declining, but in Sierra Leone there has been reporting around 400 to 500 new cases each week for several weeks.

EJPC Palliative Care Policy Development Award opens for second year

EAPC Blog

Dr Julia Riley announces the opening of nominations for next year’s EJPC Award, inaugurated in 2014 with much success.

For the experts by Melanie Rolfe

ICPCN Blog

Blog by Melanie Rolfe, who advocates for families who have a seriously ill child or who have lost a child.

ANZICS releases best practice statement on end of life care

ehospice Australia

The Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society (ANZICS) has published the first edition of its ‘Statement on care and decision making at the end of life for the critically ill’.

A London student experiences palliative care in Kolkata

ehospice India

Hannah Fox, a GP trainee from East London, is taking a year out to do an ‘Out of Programme Experience’ working in palliative care in Kolkata, West Bengal.

Reflections of hospice through the eyes of Shaun Thomas

ehospice South Africa

“Working in the communications/marketing department as an intern at the Hospice Palliative Care Association of South Africa (HPCA) has not only given me an opportunity to develop myself but has also given me insight as to what hospice is really about and passion of the people it involves.”