2016; Volume 17, No 7, July
Featured Article
Children’s Palliative Care … NOW! Reflections on ICPCN’s 2nd International Conference in Argentina
IAHPC board member, Professor Julia Downing, is our guest writer this month.
Throughout the year, IAHPC board members contribute a range of opinion pieces and other thought-provoking articles to the IAHPC Newsletter. Prof. Julia Downing, Director of Education and Research of the International Children’s Palliative Care Network (ICPCN), was in Buenos Aires for ICPCN’s 2nd International Conference on 18-21 May 2016.
As I sat on the platform chairing the opening plenary session, I was filled with a mix of emotions – excitement for ICPCN’s 2nd International Conference, amazement at the number of people attending as the rows kept filling up, and the fear that we would not have enough coffee for everyone! With more than 400 delegates from 40 countries it was a truly international conference. The atmosphere was buzzing with enthusiasm and participants attending all the sessions – so much so that those attending the 8 am ‘Meet the Expert’ sessions were sitting on the floor or standing as the venues were full. It was also great that IAHPC had supported four participants from Bangladesh, India, Guatemala and Mexico to attend the conference.
Dignitaries and delegates stand to sing the Argentine national anthem at the Opening Ceremony of the 2nd ICPCN Conference in Buenos Aires. (Photo courtesy ICPCN).
Earlier, the six pre-conference workshops had also been well attended. Leading the ‘Pain’ workshop, Dr. Stefan Friedrichsdorf covered the measurement of pain, the biophysics of pain and the treatment of pain in children. Simultaneous translation (English/Spanish) enabled participants to share and discuss some of the issues they face in managing pain in children. Leading the ‘Adolescent Palliative Care’ workshop, Dr. Marianne Phillips encouraged participants to introduce palliative care for adolescents early in the disease process, to ensure that they are not forgotten and that the unique needs of adolescents and young adults such as spirituality and sexuality are addressed.
Two workshops in Spanish addressed the principles and the invisible aspects of children’s palliative care, covering issues such as the role of the odontologist in palliative care, challenges posed by disease progression, communication, and prescription errors. Two further workshops in English explored ethics and decision-making and developing programmes in children’s palliative care. The atmosphere at the pre-conference workshops was invigorating, with participants eager to learn and to share their own experiences.
More than 400 delegates from 40 countries – a truly international conference
At the opening ceremony on the evening of 18 May there was not a dry eye in the house. It was a mix of emotional music from the Argentine Colon Theatre Choir, ICPCN Global Champion Marquardt Petersen, German singer, Renee Knapp, and welcomes from the Argentine Ministry of Health, the President of the Sociedad Argentina de Pediatria, the Asociación Latinoamericana de Cuidados Paliativos and the Asociación Argentina de Medicina y Cuidados Paliativos. Dr. Lisbeth Quesada (Costa Rica) gave the keynote address and received an award in recognition of her vital role in the development of children’s palliative care in the region. Dr. Rosa Maria Germ, Dr. Eulalia Lascar and Dr. Rut Kiman also received awards. Messages of support for the conference were received from Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge, the Pope via the Vatican, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, Micheline Etkin (ICPCN Global Ambassador) and Fundacion PUPI.
Plenary sessions covered topics as diverse as the status of children’s palliative care in Latin America (Liliana De Lima IAHPC) and globally (Joan Marston ICPCN), the impact on society of a child with life-limiting conditions, genetics and its implications for palliative care, perinatal palliative care, education and human rights, the treatment of neuropathic pain, and spirituality in children’s palliative care. A highlight for many was the big debate, with Dr. Richard Hain and Dr. Eduard Verhagen debating issues around decision-making at the end of life, and a chance for participants to air their views.
A conference is judged not just by the content of the plenary sessions, but also by the concurrent sessions and the poster presentations. Throughout the breaks the poster presentation area was buzzing with participants viewing posters and asking questions, and the venue remained full right up to the final day.
A friendly and supportive atmosphere permeated the whole conference, with participants excited to be part of it and to share with each other. The conference was felt to be overwhelmingly successful and ICPCN is already being asked about the next conference to be held in Durban in May 2018.
Catch a glimpse of the conference here in the official conference video.