Mary Callaway worked as the Associate Director for the Project on Death in America at the Open Society Foundation (OSF) in New York from 1994 to 2003, and as Director of the International Palliative Care Initiative from 1998 to 2014, when she retired. Before joining OSF, Ms. Callaway was Administrator for the Pain and Palliative Care Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City for 16 years, and served as Executive Director for the World Health Organization’s Collaborating Center for Cancer Pain Research and Education.
Ms. Callaway is currently an international palliative care consultant. She has extensive international palliative care experience and expertise in the areas of health policy, education and training, drug policy, advocacy, organizational development and program evaluation. She has worked nationally, regionally, and internationally with on-the-ground experience in Central and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, Southeast Asia, South Africa, Southern Africa, and East Africa. She has developed educational programs for health care professionals and has taught around the world at national and regional conferences.
In 2015, Ms. Callaway’s international contribution to palliative care development was recognized with a Presidential Citation by the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. She was a founding member of the United States Cancer Pain Relief Committee, a nongovernmental organization supporting access to pain medications issues. She also served on the Advisory Board of the European Palliative Care Academy, which is supported by the Bosch Foundation in Germany. As a former member of the African Palliative Care Association’s pain management working group, she was involved in planning and implementing three regional drug advocacy workshops to increase opioid availability; she was also a member of its board from 2016 to 2022. Ms. Callaway served for six years on the grants committee of the Virginia Gildersleeve Foundation that is dedicated to the advancement of women and girls, and is a member of the small grants review committee for Women Graduates, an organization based in the United States.
Ms. Callaway joined the IAHPC Board in 2015, and is a member of its Fundraising Committee and Institutional Recognition Awards Program Review Committee.
Away from palliative care, Ms. Callaway enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing golf, gardening, reading, listening to music, training her two small dogs, and volunteering with the Heartland Therapeutic Riding Program, providing assisted services to children and adults with physical and developmental disabilities.
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How your gift supports the IAHPC mission
Achieved: $24,941
Goal: $30,000
83%
Education
Your gift funds the operational costs of our online courses taught by globally recognized experts who volunteer their time and provide educational resources relevant to palliative care topics. It also supports scholarships that enable palliative care workers to attend educational events and congresses, and allows us to maintain Pallipedia, the free, live, online dictionary.
The goal of this pillar is to implement strategies, resources and tools that will improve the competencies of the global workforce for appropriate palliative care delivery. We have two programs under this pillar plus many other resources for our members.
Your gift enables us to build and strengthen the partnerships that accelerate global, regional, and national advocacy for palliative care. We advocate for its integration into primary health care under universal health coverage and effective access to essential palliative care medicines and packages for people of all ages. Your gift supports our work to prepare delegates and participate in technical consultation meetings of the relevant UN organizations.
The goal this pillar is the integration of palliative care into primary health care within the spectrum of universal coverage to improve access to adequate care for patients in need. We offer the following to our members:
Documents on Human Rights and Access to Medicines and Care
Research
Your gift enables us to continue doing research that provides guidance and recommendations for action, based on responses from the global palliative care community. Such research includes our recent evaluation of the impact of euthanasia and assisted dying practices on palliative care workers and the use of essential medicines for palliative care. It also supports the costs of publications focused on research relevant to palliative care.
The goal of this pillar is to design and implement projects that lead to the integration of palliative care into health policies, resolutions, and key documents. Our studies help us provide guidance and recommendations, and take action based on the responses from the global palliative care community.
Your membership enables you to participate in IAHPC projects such as the:
Your gift enables us to continue our in-depth reporting and book reviews in Pallinews, as well as media campaigns that raise awareness about the need to increase access to care and support for patients and families.
We are a small organization that allocates over 80% of our budget to mission driven programs and to the maintenance of our free website. We need operational funding to continue the work.
Give a gift, get a gift
IAHPC members: When you gift a 2-year membership to a colleague in a low- or middle-income country, we extend your membership by 6 months.
