Volume 24, Number 8: August 2023
What I Learned at the EAPC Congress
Each of the four IAHPC Scholars attending the 18th World Congress of the European Association for Palliative Care was asked: What were your three main takeaways? These are their replies.
Communication and Biomarkers: Two ways to understand patient needs
Diana Beglaryan, head, Khnami Palliative Care Center
Yerevan, Armenia
My three main takeaways were: the value of advanced care planning, how to communicate with terminally ill patients, and geriatric palliative care.
One thing I learned was not to just say, "You look great," which I often do in my practice, but to say "You look great, but it does not always mean you feel that way. How do you feel just now?" It has changed how I work.
I am planning to organize training for nurses and a conference for doctors where the main topics will be communication with terminally ill patients and advanced care planning discussions with patient and caregivers.
A session on biomarkers in palliative medicine was very interesting for me. Learning that NfL (neurofilament light) is a biomarker for delirium was useful, as delirium is an everyday problem when we care for patients with cancer.
Definition of Diversity Is Unexpectedly Broad
Lisa Christine Irumba, Advocacy and Research Officer, Palliative Care Association of Uganda
Kampala, Uganda
My three takeaways were these.
- Advocacy and research play a key role in understanding health inequalities that still exist, and they help in recommending solutions to ensure equitable access, especially for palliative care services.
- There is a need to develop strategies and policies that are specific to communities or countries to help improve equitable access to palliative care
- There is a need to change the narrative for palliative care and ensure people fully understand diversity, which includes differences in many aspects and also a variety of conditions that palliative care can support, and not just cancer or HIV/AIDS as would be for my country.
Foundation for the future: The conference laid a foundation for new collaborations. It would be good to understand the perceptions of health workers regarding diversity in palliative care.
Abstract presented: Fast-Tracking Strategic Advocacy for the Inclusion of Palliative Care In Universal Health Coverage (UHC) to Ensure Equity In Uganda—Experience at Palliative Care Association of Uganda
Integrating a Public Health Approach Is a Pressing Need
Farah Demachkieh, head of quality, research, and development, SANAD The Home Hospice Organization of Lebanon
Beirut, Lebanon
Compassionate communities and adopting a public health approach to palliative care is becoming more pressing than any other time and is crucial to address issues related to death and dying and increase access to compassionate care.
Communication—including the art of listening—can be a therapeutic intervention that is as healing as other more complex interventions.
Huge disparities and inequities remain present for many, such as those who are poor, homeless, or have a different gender expression. A different approach in research is needed to better understand and address these complex experiences: a community-oriented approach embedded in participation is needed, as is building trust and becoming part of the community for a better understanding and uptake of interventions. It is important to integrate a generalist palliative care approach into acute medical care settings, such as emergency, and the different experiences/challenges that come with it.
Foundation for the future: I attended the EAPC Junior Forum Research Network, which I joined recently, and will be following up to identify possible collaborators for research projects.
I Am Motivated to Research the Impact of Social Determinants
Miguel Bayona, pediatric palliative care physician, Hospital Universitario Hernando Moncaleano Perdomo
Neiva, Colombia
The congress theme was "Equity & Diversity." From my point of view, it is essential that palliative care becomes available in all settings. Global inequalities must change to alleviate the suffering of those in need. From a "new public health" approach, compassionate communities are fundamental initiatives and must continue to be replicated around the world.
While pediatric palliative care continues to grow, its development is uneven. There is a need for a nuanced approach and further research in both oncological and nononcological palliative care.
Favorite session: "The Lancet Commission on the Value of Death: Future Actions for Palliative Care" was my favourite because the panelists analyzed palliative care and the public health view of death from three perspectives: first, a report on the Lancet Commission report on the value of death; then a lecture on "Does palliative care own death?"; and, finally, the role of palliative care in the management of death, bereavement, and suffering in low- and middle-income countries.
Foundation for the future: I am motivated to research social determinants and their impact on childhood cancer survival, and how palliative care can improve this survival through supportive interventions. Also, to define how community support networks, such as compassionate communities, can have an impact on these social determinants and their resulting effects.
To find out more about IAHPC’s Program Support Grants, including IAHPC Scholarships and Fellowships, please visit our website. Through these programs we support projects and individuals around the world, especially in developing countries in Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia, and Latin America.