2018; Volume 19, No 5, May

IAHPC Membership Matters

Stories about how your membership can make a world of difference.

Grace Kuvumbi presented her poster titled, ‘Integrating Palliative Care: Impact of a 5 year strategy from Mulago and Makerere Palliative Care Unit.’

Last year’s Members Recognition Award winner, Grace Kivumbi of Kampala, Uganda, used her Traveling Scholarship to attend the joint Palliative Care Research Society and Association of Palliative Medicine Supportive and Palliative Care Conference held in March 2018 in the UK.

Sharing Knowledge, Making Contacts

The conference gave me an opportunity to share knowledge about palliative care in Uganda through the poster that I presented, including the work of our partner Cairdeas IPCT (International Palliative Care Trust). It was such a pleasure to meet people who have worked and supported palliative care in Uganda, and those with an interest of working in palliative care in Uganda. It was wonderful to meet professionals with vast knowledge in palliative care, to listen and learn from them. It was also a great opportunity for me to network and get contacts for possible collaborations.

I was able to get contacts for possible research collaborations and partnerships within the international community, as we have a lot of resources to tap in terms of both data that has been collected and patient stories.

Anyone, regardless of income, has challenges

I was also able to appreciate the services that are offered in other parts of the world in comparision to what is offered back home with limited resources. I learned that even communities with more resources have their own challenges.

The knowledge and skills I gained at the conference will help mobilize resources for research grants that can enable us to provide evidence-based palliative care to improve the quality of life of the patients and families we care for. Hopefully, it will spark opportunities to share what we do in our resource-limited settings, through presentations and publications both locally and internationally that could influence policy, clinical practice, and advocacy for palliative care.

Prepare Program Support Grant Application for 2019

In addition to the many scholarships and grants it bestows on individuals, the IAHPC considers larger projects for a Program Support Grant. The grant is intended to help establish projects to enhance palliative care delivery in low- and middle-income countries.

This pediatric hospice in Guatamala will double its beds to eight, thanks largely to an IAHPC Program Support Grant.

The 2018 grantee, The Fundacíon Ammar Ayudando, received $15,000 in 2017 to help add four pediatric palliative care rooms to its facility for terminally ill children in Guatamala. After a visit from the IAHPC to view progress on the project, an additional $15,000 was granted for 2018. The grants enable construction of a new building to house the rooms, which will double the Fondacíon’s capacity.

In its application, the Fondacíon describes the future unit as providing children with less than six months to live a private room for each of them and their family member ‘with a space full of light in all directions and access to a multidisciplinary team of daily support — doctors, psychologist, nurses, thanatologist, spiritual leaders, and maintenance staff — providing a control of symptoms, medications, centralized oxygen, complete feeding and all basic services to the poorest.’

An application must include a description of the project, a budget, the timeline, and an explanation of how the project will be sustained in the future. For an application, contact Genevieve Napier.

New and Renewing Members' List

Read the list of individuals who joined/renewed their membership with IAHPC during the past month.

Membership renewals

New members

See the full list of IAHPC members

Previous Page | News Index | Next Page