2017; Volume 18, No 11, November

IAHPC Traveling Scholar’s Report

Palliative care is public health: Impressions of the 5th International Public Health and Palliative Care Conference

In September 2017, IAHPC provided traveling scholarships to 12 healthcare professionals to attend the 5th International Public Health and Palliative Care Conference in Ottawa, Canada. They crossed four continents coming from 11 countries: Bangladesh, Chile, China, India, Iraq, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, and Zimbabwe.

Our grantee from China explains how she hopes to apply what she found in Ottawa to the Chinese context. Dr. Di Xiao is an associate professor at Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital, Tsinghua University, Beijing. She is also Director and Member of Council of the China Life Care Association, which helps the China Ministry of Health to develop policies on end-of-life care and palliative care.


The 5th International Public Health and Palliative Care Conference brought together public health and palliative care/end-of-life care professionals from Canada and around the world to share ideas and experiences. I have greatly benefited from the wide variety of speakers, workshops and presentations and am inspired to put into practice what I learned. Here’s how I hope to share my learning from this wonderful conference.

Canadian traditions and recent developments in palliative care

Dr. Balfour Mount, Canada’s ‘father of palliative care’, initiated the term ‘Palliative Care’ to describe how a caring society can and should treat its people when their health becomes fragile. Canada has a long history of such care as their First Nations people have demonstrated for countless generations. During the conference, Canadian professionals shared their health-promoting palliative care successes. To build Compassionate Communities (a public health approach to end-of-life care),

Canada has carried out many palliative care programs rooted in individual, family, community and cultures that may inspire other countries to improve the quality of palliative and end-of-life care services.

I now have a deeper understanding of ‘palliative care is public health’ and strong connections have developed through the conference.

Strengthening sustainable community partnerships

In the UK, ‘Communities are prepared to help’ has been included as one of six ambitions for end-of life-care in the Ambitions Framework for End of Life 2015-2020 published by NHS England (National Health Service). Embedding community development into health policy gives incentives to health and social care organizations to participate in building community resources. This framework may assist other countries, including China, in developing national and local strategies in palliative care and end-of-life care.

The support and friendship of other IAHPC traveling scholars.
Left to right: Dr. Di Xiao with Dr. Abhishek Kumar (India), Dr. Layth Mula-Hussain (Iraq), Dr. Camillo Meneses Cortes (Chile) and Beverley Sebastian (Zimbabwe).
Global learning and sharing

I made many good friends from around the world as well as learning from their presentations and workshops. These cherished supports and friendships will really benefit me – my institution, and our country.

During the conference I was lucky enough to win a prize draw, a copy of the second edition of The Pallium Palliative Pocketbook, a peer-reviewed, referenced resource. I will try to get permission to translate it into Chinese and benefit millions of future Chinese palliative patients. (See the photo with Denise Marshall, Conference Chair).

Big challenges ahead for China

China has a population of 1.38 billion (2016), with 220 million aged over 60 years in 2015. Our country is confronted with many challenges in palliative and end-of-life care such as: capacity development, creating Compassionate Community partnerships, training and education for health professionals, access to essential medicines, communication skills, and death education.

But most important is the need to establish national public health policies and medical management guidelines. And we must develop a five to ten-year national strategy for promotion of palliative and end-of-life care as soon as possible. I will try my best to do more – but we still have a long way to go. Come on, China . . .

I want to thank IAHPC from the bottom of my heart for supporting me with a traveling scholarship to attend the International Public Health and Palliative Care Conference 2017. I am so proud of being a member of IAHPC!

Links and resources

Reducing suffering through IAHPC Programs – Launch of our video

Each day, many of you working in hospice and palliative care reduce unnecessary suffering in your communities throughout the world. At IAHPC, we are grateful for your commitment and dedication.

We invite you to watch our video and listen to our colleagues as they describe IAHPC’s impact on minimizing suffering through the benefits provided to its members, such as Traveling Scholarships.

Please share with your colleagues and friends so that they too may join our global palliative care movement!

Thank you so much for your support and commitment.
The IAHPC team.

To find out more about IAHPC’s Program Support Grants, and our Traveling Scholarships and Traveling 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.

You can contribute to this program and help palliative care workers attend and participate in congresses and courses by donating to the Traveling Scholarships Campaign in the Global Giving website.

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