What's New?
What's New Meetings/Seminars
" Palliative Medicine : the first 18 years of a new
sub-specialty of General Medicine", by Derek Doyle
I am pleased to inform you that the Journal of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh has published a paper by Derek Doyle entitled " Palliative Medicine : the first 18 years of a new sub-specialty of General Medicine" with sections related to the UK, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Poland, Romania and New Zealand, USA and Canada. The paper is available online in http://www.rcpe.ac.uk/publications/articles/palliative_medicine.pdf
I hope you take the time to read this great paper which provides a good overview of the development of palliative medicine throughout history.
International Observatory on End of Life Care
“Dear colleagues,
The Observatory has recently added Jordan and the Palestinian Authority to its growing list of reports for the Middle East Cancer Consortium (MECC).
Select the link below for further information.
http://www.eolc-observatory.net/global_analysis/mecc.htm
Have a pleasant weekend.
Best wishes,
Anthony
Anthony Greenwood
Information Support Officer
International Observatory on End of Life Care (http://www.eolc-observatory.net)
Institute for Health Research
Bowland Tower East
Lancaster University
Click on the link below to view information on our new book “A Bit of Heaven for the Few? An oral history of the modern hospice movement in the United Kingdom ” from our own non-profit making publishing arm - Observatory Publications.”
http://www.observatory-publications.net/obspub/
The UK
Dear all
Mick wanted to inform you all that last night we had a reception launching “Suffering at the end of life - The state of the world” (now at http://www.worldday.org/documents/state_of_the_world.pdf ) in the presence of HRH Princess Anne. There followed a fantastic concert with musicians including John Williams, the guitarist, Markasa and Kaya players.
Mick Thorpe with princess Anne in the Oct 4 reception launching the publication Suffering at the End of Life - the Sate of the World as part of the activities to celebrate World Hospice and Pallaitive Care Day.
There has been significant news coverage throughout the day about the launch including an interview with Archbishop Desmond Tutu and palliative care services in India and Uganda on BBC World Service Outlook, a BBC News 24 interview, and BBC Breakfast interview with David Praill and a hospice user from the Iain Rennie hospice at home service on BBC Breakfast. An interview with Chris Shaw can be seen at the following link http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4309446.stm. Filming also took place at St Gemmas Hospice in Leeds.
There are only 2 days to go until World Hospice and Palliative Care day with over 700 events in over 60 countries around the world. In the UK there are 210 Voices for Hospices concerts, 200 Music in Hospitals concerts in hospices and hospitals, a Day Care patients families and carers walk to raise awareness and funds around the country, a family day at the Rowan's Hospice Portsmouth, an open day at the Lewis-Manning hospice in Poole and at the St Vincent's Hospice, Scotland and a musical evening with talks on palliative care at the End of Life Observatory in Lancaster……
Thanks
Nick Pahl
Help the Hospices, UK
Working together to meet the palliative care needs of children in Johannesburg , South Africa : The story of a successful partnership.
Dr M.A.Meiring (Director/Paediatrician for CHOMP)
Dr M P Luck (Medical Director, Hospice Wits)
In June 2003, the Children’s Homes Outreach Medical Programme (CHOMP), then a 6 month old organisation, invited the Hospice Association of the Witwatersrand (Hospice Wits) to give a talk to caregivers from the Johannesburg children’s homes on palliative care for children. I could hardly wait for the presentation to be over so that we could sit down and talk to our invited speakers about something that became glaringly obvious to both of us during the presentation - we needed to work together to meet the palliative care needs of children in Johannesburg.
CHOMP had discovered several “makeshift hospices” in the children’s homes, created out of a well intentioned need to look after chronically ill, mostly HIV infected, children. The Children’s Homes that had opened these facilities all told similar stories as to why they had done so. Some had found themselves in the situation where they had to care for a dying (HIV infected) child who had been turned away from an overburdened hospital; others were dissatisfied about the care of these children in government hospitals; or wanted to be with “their” child at the time of death rather than having them die alone in a hospital ward.
CHOMP was concerned about the level of care in these facilities, especially in those that were poorly staffed and had no access to basic drugs. CHOMP approached Hospice Wits for assistance in this regard.
After much deliberation and two meetings, Hospice Wits decided to open a pilot paediatric in-patient palliative care unit within their adult Hospice. The agreement between our two organisations was that Hospice Wits would provide and run the facility on a daily basis and CHOMP would provide Paediatric input for the children admitted there, as well as assist in the training of staff on aspects of Paediatric care.
One of the larger patient care rooms in the Hospice was then converted into a “5 bed paediatric unit”; one of the advantages of small patients is that they don’t take up too much space!
In July 2003 we admitted our first patient. The unit extended its services later that same year to children from the hospitals and has to date cared for 101 patients. Although the majority of children (87%) admitted have HIV related conditions, we have also cared for children with non-HIV related conditions. These have included children with malignancies (5), neurological conditions (5), renal failure (2) and liver failure (1).
Even though the unit has cared for this many patients, it has not been operating at maximum capacity. We believe this is due partly to the fact that many paediatricians still have misconceptions as to what palliative care is all about and are reluctant to refer children to Hospice. Also the unit is situated in an affluent suburb that is far for the neediest children and in particular those from the Soweto Township , in which Southern Africa ’s largest hospital, the Chris Hani Baragwanath hospital, is situated.
Fortunately the planning and construction of a larger, permanent building, to take the place of the present inadequate facilities of the Hospice Wits branch in Soweto , will have a separate 10 bed Paediatric In-Patient Unit and is already underway. The CHOMP/Hospice Wits partnership will continue to collaborate in the running of this second paediatric palliative care facility.
Parallel to this initiative, the Hospice and Palliative Care Association of South Africa, several South African Hospices (including Hospice Wits),CHOMP and other individuals have collaborated together to design a short course for professionals in paediatric palliative care. Hospice Wits and CHOMP will be conducting their first official course in Johannesburg in three weeks time!
This partnership for me has been extremely exciting. I have been converted from a previously “palliative care naïve” paediatrician to one who would like to make this much needed field a full-time career.
Sister Eglet from Hospice Wits caring for one of the “little patients” in
the Paediatric In-Patient Unit at the Houghton based Wits Hospice.
“Hospice Foundation of America Wins Freddie Award
Washington (October 12) Hospice Foundation of America’s 2004 program, Living With Grief® : Alzheimer’s Disease, won the 2005 Health & Medical Media Award in the competition’s Alzheimer’s & Dementia category. This year marked the 31st year of competition for the prestigious International Health & Medical Media Awards, also known as the FREDDIE Awards.
The awards program, sponsored by medical publisher MediMedia, is open to organizations producing videos, films, DVDs, CD-ROMs, and Web sites addressing health and medical issues for both consumers and health care professionals.
HFA’s 11th Annual National Bereavement Teleconference, moderated by Cokie Roberts of ABC News, features a multidisciplinary panel of experts who discuss what is known medically about the diagnosis, progression, and treatment of Alzheimer’s.
The program also:
· explores some innovative programs for patients and caregivers coping with Alzheimer’s;
· focuses on the particular grief issues that patients and families face during the course of this illness; and
· examines the challenges and opportunities that Alzheimer’s disease presents to clinicians, caregivers, hospice workers, and policy advocates.
Living With Grief® : Alzheimer’s Disease offers insight and practical advice to all who are involved in the care of patients with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. This program is available both in VHS or DVD in its entire 2 ½-hour length or in an edited one-hour version.
Winning this prestigious award in the healthcare industry is comparable to winning the motion picture industry's Academy Award (Oscar).
Hospice Foundation of America’s 2003 program, Living With Grief: Coping With Public Tragedy and its Web site, www.hospicefoundation.org, were also honored as finalists in the respective /Coping/ and/ Web site /categories. Finalists in the competition included CNN Productions, Home Box Office, and WebMD Health.
To receive our free, monthly e-newsletter, please provide your email address to [email protected].
HFA does not sell, trade, or share your email address.
Hospice Foundation of America exists to help those who cope personally or professionally with terminal illness, death and the process of grief and bereavement.”
Meetings
2nd International Forum on Pain Medicine: Medical Specialties meet Pain Medicine
Sponsored by the Mexican Pain Society, FEDELAT and World Institute of Pain (WIP)
May 25 - 28, 2006 Hotel Presidente Intercontinental, Guadalajara , Mexico
For further information and registration:
Kenes International
Tel: +41 22 908 0488
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.kenes.com/ifpm
Seminars in Pschosocial Oncology
Date: January 21-22, 2006
Location: Calicut, Kerala, India
Jointly Organized by:
Kerala Initiative in Psychosocial Oncology
Alpha Pain Clinic, Edamuttam, Trichur
&
Institue of Palliative Medicine
Medical College of Calicut
Click on the following link to view seminar brochure:
(Will open in new window)
http://www.hospicecare.com/newsletter2005/nov05/Oncology.pdf
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