Published on: September 30, 2017

Looming crisis in India: opioid access is challenged!

We hear with a sense of shock that manufacturing of morphine in the Government Opium and Alkaloid Works – currently the only possible source of raw morphine powder in the country – has stopped in the only two factories in Neemuch and Ghazipur. We hear that the pollution control board has ordered the factories to close. Soon, even in those places where morphine was available so far, there will be no stock.

And worse, no solution seems to be in sight. We hear that there are discussions about importing morphine powder; but even if that decision is arrived at, how long will the process take? And how expensive will morphine become?

Who will tell this mother that it is all over and that she will have to go back to feeling the red-hot iron pushed into her bones?

Any suggestions, anyone?

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“End-of-life care law” is gasping for breath.

More than a year after the Government of India published a draft end-of-life care law, the matter is still seems to be hanging in the air. Please see a commentary published in the Journal of Global Oncology by Aju Matthew and M.R.Rajagopal, Care of the Terminally Ill Patient in India: Comments on the Proposed Legislation. “If the principle of patient autonomy is to be respected,” the authors argue, “the proposed bill should consider upholding advance directives as an integral part of end-of-life care of terminally ill patients.”

Currently, the draft law stipulates that when the person is incompetent to take a decision at that point of time, even if he has left valid advance directives, the family will have to move the High Court of the state for permission to withdraw artificial life-sustaining treatment like artificial ventilator.

The draft law can be seen at http://www.prsindia.org/uploads/media//draft/Draft%20Passive%20Euthanansia%20Bill.pdf

While on the same subject, Dr Roop Gursahani brings to our attention the decision by a High Court in the United Kingdom as reported in “the Independent”, Right-to-die cases no longer need court approval after landmark ruling, the court has ordered that it is not necessary for the family to approach the court for withdrawing artificial life support.

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Rajam S Nair Endowment

Dr Ajith Nair and his wife Jaya Nair have instituted “Rajam S Nair Endowment” in the sacred memory of their loving mother, the late Rajam S Nair.

Rajam Nair was born in Haripad, Kerala in 1947. She died of Leukemia on 01 September 2014. She was an exceptional person with such love and sympathy for her fellow human beings that she always left pleasant memories everywhere she went.

“Death does not scare me,” she used to say. “Pain does. I prefer death to pain.”

Her son and daughter-in-law decided to institute an endowment in her name to improve awareness about the need for palliative care in India.

Rajam S. Nair Endowment Prize Competition

Pallium India announces Rajam S. Nair endowment prize competition open to undergraduate and postgraduate students in India.

The theme for write-up is the same as that of World Palliative Care Day 2017: “Palliative care and Universal Health Coverage: Do not leave those suffering behind”.

Word Limit: 2000

Language: English

Please download this file for further details on the competition and the prizes.

Send your write-up as PDF to the email id: writeup@palliumindia.live-website.com

  • Deadline for submission: 5 November 2017
  • Notification of prizes: 15 December 2017
  • Prize distribution: 23 February 2018  at 25TH Annual Conference of Indian Association of Palliative Care, Jawaharlal Nehru Auditorium, AIIMS, New Delhi

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Kochi declaration

In the presence of Archbishop Mons. Vincenzo Paglia and Dott.ssa Nunziata Comoretto from the Vatican, the Catholic Health Association of India (CHAI) at its National Health Convention in Kakkanad, Kochi, declared unequivocally that palliative care is the right of every person who needs it and that hospitals have a duty to provide it. (Read the Kochi declaration).

CHAI and Pallium India have signed a memorandum of understanding to work together to integrate palliative care into CHAI’s health care network.

Pallium India thanks Rev Fr Dr Mathew Abraham, director general of CHAI and his team for this opportunity to work with CHAI.

Catholic Health Assn inks MoU with Pallium India – Times of India

‘Association will initiate activities focusing on palliative care’ – The New Indian Express

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UNODC expert meeting to improve access to controlled medicines

Dr Katherine Pettus, Advocacy Officer, International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care, writes:

Diederik Lohman, Jim Cleary and I were in Vienna for an Expert Meeting convened by UNODC on improving access to controlled medicines.

The purpose was to draft a document for member states containing practical actions to implement the recommendations of the 2016 UNGASS Outcome Document https://www.unodc.org/documents/postungass2016/outcome/V1603301-E.pdf on improving access to essential controlled medicines.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the INCB, WHO, China, Pakistan, and NGOs experts from Brazil, DRC, Ghana, Greece, Malta, Mexico, and Poland. Policy experts attended from IAHPC, the Pain and Policy Studies Group, and Human Rights Watch.

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“Thalolam”: Patient Get-together on World Palliative Care Day, Oct 14

“It was heaven to feel the waves on my feet. I shall never forget this,” said a person on a wheelchair, who, since her spinal cord injury, had never been able to see the sea again. We had made it happen on a World Palliative Care Day. (Image from 2015)

On October 14, 2017, World Hospice and Palliative Care Day, Pallium India is once again organizing a get-together of patients and families. The participants, estimated to be around 500, would include mostly wheelchair-bound patients, patients with life-limiting diseases and their family members. The program, titled “THALOLAM 2017” will be conducted at Govt. Youth Hostel, Veli, Trivandrum.

Can you help?

For each patient and family the expense estimated (for food and a gift) is ₹1500 (US $23).

Please donate whatever you can to make this event a happy one for our patients and their families.

For Bank transfer:
State Bank of India, Pattom Branch (IFSC code: SBIN0003355). Savings Account number: 30086491915.
Checques and Demand Drafts in the name of ‘Pallium India’.
To donate online please visit: https://palliumindia.org/donate/

For queries, please contact us: 9746745502 (Babu Abraham). Email: info@palliumindia.live-website.com

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World Hospice and Palliative Care Day

World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is a unified day of action to celebrate and support hospice and palliative care around the world. World Hospice and Palliative Care Day takes place on the second Saturday of October every year. The theme for World Hospice and Palliative Care Day 2017 is: “Universal Health Coverage and Palliative Care – Don’t leave those suffering behind!”

The aims of World Palliative care day are:

  • To share our vision to increase the availability of hospice and palliative care throughout the world by creating opportunities to speak out about the issues
  • To raise awareness and understanding of the needs – medical, social, practical, spiritual – of people living with a life limiting illness and their families
  • To raise funds to support and develop hospice and palliative care services around the world.

Are you planning an event?

Please register your event at: http://www.thewhpca.org/world-hospice-and-palliative-care-day/add-event

Resources available from the WHPCA website include:

The toolkit includes a handy social media guide, including World Hospice and Palliative Care Day draft tweets. For more information on World Hospice and Palliative Care Day, please visit: http://www.thewhpca.org/world-hospice-and-palliative-care-day

–

KUHS establishes Centre for Studies on Health Care Counseling and Palliative care

There is often a lot of talk about healthcare ignoring the human being. A lot of talk; but usually little action.

In a major step towards improving this situation, Kerala University of Health Sciences (KUHS) now establishes a University Centre with the potential to focus on human suffering and on information needs rather than just diseases.

KUHS becomes the first university in India not only to integrate palliative care into its undergraduate medical curriculum, but also to establish a centre dedicated to health care counseling and palliative care.

We congratulate and thank Dr MKC Nair, the Vice Chancellor of KUHS and his team for this timely action, modeling the way for health education in India.

The palliative care fraternity in Kerala now has the opportunity and responsibility to assist KUHS in implementation of this imaginative programme.

–

MetaECHO Conference 2017

Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes – ECHO is an innovative model that is rippling across the globe and improving access to care. Dr Sanjeev Arora, professor of gastroenterology at University of New Mexico, is the pioneer founder of the ECHO concept. He began ECHO by empowering community level practitioners in managing Hepatitis C. The aim is to demonopolize knowledge and allow the experience and best practices of experts to reach those practitioners working in the community where it is most applicable.

ECHO achieves this through a guided practice model using hub-and-spoke knowledge-sharing virtual networks, led by expert team and attended by practitioners from different settings who share similar patient concerns. It combines brief didactic presentations and case-discussions to communicate the nuances of the themes identified. TIPS began the 1st ECHO based training palliative care in India in Jan 2017 and is currently conducting four ECHOs on different themes in palliative care. (Click here for details on upcoming ECHO sessions.)

The 3rd MetaECHO conference was held at Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA from September 12th to 17th, with the theme – Infinite Possibilities. The event, coordinated by Dr Max Watson, brought in ECHOists from across the world who shared their experience of force multiplication of knowledge through his truly democratic platform. TIPS ECHO team – represented by Dr Nandini Vallath participated in a panel discussion on using ECHO for palliative care education. She presented an overview and five hey learnings from the experiences of conducting palliative care ECHO in India and India’s that targets the largest population, spanning the entire country of India and beyond. The other panelists were Dr Suresh Reddy and Sriram Yennu from MD Anderson who shared experience as the biggest cancer hospital in the world, with target population of specialist teams throughout Africa; and Chris Piromalli from Alaska who gave perspective of engaging American Indians and Alaska Natives through a multidisciplinary approach palliative care ECHO involving the Community Health Aides/Practitioners.

In ECHO all teach and all learn – Dr Sanjeev Arora

–

TIPS ECHO sessions on Pain Management

Sumitha T., Project Executive at Pallium India, writes:

Pallium India, through its Trivandrum Institute of Palliative Sciences – Extension for Community Health Outcome (TIPS-ECHO) program, is now propagating the concepts of palliative care throughout the country along with the stories of human lives in dire need for pain relief and palliative care in the 21st century.

In order to reach country’s 1.2 billion people, TIPS-ECHO was initiated under the mentorship of Dr. Nandini Vallath on 20th January 2017. ECHO was created by Dr. Sanjeev Arora from USA and this virtual learning is facilitated via “zoom” platform.

So far, we have conducted sessions on Treat That Pain, Methadone and Rehabilitation as an Essential Component of Pain Management. Psychological Aspects of Chronic Pain under the guidance of Dr. Chitra Venketesh started from 13th September 2017.

We are thankful to Dr. Arora, entire ECHO team in Delhi, Dr. Vidya Kumaraswamy for her brilliant coordination in the first sessions, all our faculty from India as well as abroad, our mentors and Dr. Sunilkumar, additional director of TIPS for helping us reach more as we believe that “learning is movement from moment to moment”.

Click here for TIPS-ECHO schedules.

[Caption: TIPS as the hub in the southernmost part of India and participants as spokes from all over the country.]

–

Sahayatra Palliative Care Awareness Ride

Pallium India, IAPC (Kerala), CET Cycle Club (CCC) and Indus Cycling Embassy, Trivandrum have jointly organized a palliative care awareness bicycle ride from Mannarkad, Palakkad to Kovalam, Trivandrum. The event was flagged off on September 29th and will terminate at Udaya Samudra, Kovalam at 5p.m. on October 2nd. The bicycle riders are being welcomed warmly at each location by district palliative care initiatives and palliative care enthusiasts.

The program was organized to spread the message of palliative care to the public, to declare palliative care as a right of every individual.

If you are in Trivandrum on October 2nd, do head to Pallium India (12 noon) or Kovalam (4 p.m.) to welcome the riders as they complete their mission!! Contact: 9746745502

–

Focus on palliative care at World Neurology Congress, Kyoto, Japan

Pallium India was privileged to be part of lively discussions to improve access to palliative care in neurological disorders at the World Neurology Congress in Kyoto, Japan from 16th to 21st September, 2017.

It was heart-warming to find that several Indian neurologists participated in the deliberations.

In addition to an erudite presentation on the current global status by Dr Borasio, palliative care in India and Japan received special attention.

–

IAPCON 2018

The 25th Annual Conference of the Indian Association of Palliative Care (IAPCON 2018) will be held from 23rd to 25th February, 2018, at Jawaharlal Auditorium, AIIMS, New Delhi. The theme of the conference is Create, Collaborate and Communicate.

Last date to submit abstracts: 30th October, 2017.

For more details on the Conference, please download the brochure.

Visit the conference homepage: http://www.iapcon2018.com/

–

Palliative Care Award 2017 for SAARC Countries Instituted by Cancer Aid Society

Cancer Aid Society invites Application / Nomination from Doctors, Paramedical Staff and Social Workers with demonstrative leadership in the field of Palliative Care for the Cancer Patients from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.

How to Apply

Apply through online form along with the references and verifiable evidences to be sent in one email to palliativecare@canceraidsocietyindia.org (media coverage/ pictures) in order to identify the leadership of the applicant/ nominee.

Last date of Application is 24.00 Hrs. (India Time) of 15th October 2017.

Palliative Care Award 2017 of Rs. 1,00,000/- will be presented at the 25th International Conference of the Indian Association of Palliative Care in February 2018 to be held at AIIMS New Delhi India.

Cancer Aid Society is an NGO in Special Consultative Status with United Nations ECOSOC, working across India since 1987 on Palliative Care, Advocacy, Prevention and Control of Tobacco, Cancer and other Non Communicable Diseases.

–

Vacancy: Project Manager at Vishakhapatnam, AP

Pallium India is looking for a committed, creative professional passionate about making a lasting difference in the health care of people.

The candidate will be based out of Vishakhapatnam, AP, and is expected to travel across AP and to other parts of India as and when required.

Project position: Project Manager
Location: Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh
Education: University degree in public health or social work or public policy
Experience: Minimum two years of proven professional experience in health care projects
Languages: Fluency in Telugu and English
Work type: Fixed term staff

Under the guidance and supervision of project heads, the job responsibility includes:

  • Facilitating the scaling up of palliative care across the state of Andhra Pradesh and other states of India
  • Advocacy, networking and partnership building targeting the objectives of the project
  • Documentation and reporting as per the project requirement

Interested candidates can send detailed and updated CV to sumitha@palliumindia.live-website.com

For more vacancies, visit our Careers page.

–

IAHPC announces Traveling Scholarships to the 2018 ALPC Congress, EAPC Research Congress and ICPCN Conference

The International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care (IAHPC) has announced the following scholarships:

In order to apply for a traveling scholarship, applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Have not received grants from IAHPC in the past 3 years
  • Be current IAHPC members. If you wish to apply and are not an IAHPC member, you may join by clicking here.

Preference will be given to applicants:

  • who have been IAHPC active members for two or more consecutive years.
  • whose institution is an IAHPC active member.
  • who are living in Lower, Lower-Middle and Upper-Middle income categories as per the World Bank income classification data.
  • who are dedicated full-time to palliative care in their current work.
  • graduated less than 10 years ago from university.
  • who have an accepted abstract for poster / oral presentation. Proof of acceptance is required.
  • who describe in their applications long term goals which lead to improvements in any or all of the following areas: service provision; education; availability of and access to medicines; and public policy.

This program offers funding for travel and registration only, applicants will need to secure funding from other sources to cover additional expenses.

More detailed information about the application process and the online form are available at the IAHPC website.

For information on how to apply please contact Genevieve Napier, IAHPC Manager of Programs and Projects at gnapier@iahpc.com.

–

Isolation, Loneliness and Depression

A new Singapore study has shown that social isolation and loneliness were closely associated with depressive symptoms in adults. Those who were lonely were more likely to be divorced, unemployed, widowed, have nonmental chronic conditions or previous depression. Loneliness was also associated with depressive symptoms independent of any social isolation indicator.

“The results of the study establish a significant and unique association of different social isolation indicators and loneliness with depressive symptoms in community-dwelling adults aged 21 and above,” the researchers wrote. The study drew data from the Population Health Index Survey targeted towards community-dwelling adults in Central Singapore. A total of 1,942 individuals participated in the survey.

Read the complete report here: Social isolation, loneliness tied to depressive symptoms in adults

–

Palliative care in diabetes

For anyone who associated with palliative care only in cancer: please see the article by thediabetescouncil.com You may not only be surprised to see that diabetes accounts for nearly 5% of palliative care needs globally; but also to learn that cancer forms only about one third of all. See https://www.thediabetescouncil.com/palliative-care-and-advanced-terminal-illness-for-patients-with-diabetes/

Thank you, Jasmine Williams, for sharing it with us.

–

Video of the Month: Death is inevitable, but a bad death is not

The Economist: Death is inevitable, but a bad death is not

–

Donate to Pallium India

The money you give will pay for essential free medicines for the poor, for their travel to the clinic or for schooling of their children, or other forms of care. Please give whatever you can. No amount is too small.

To donate, please visit: palliumindia.live-website.com/donate

Write to us: info@palliumindia.live-website.com / 9746745497

–

Upcoming Events

Oct 14, 2017: International conference on Peri-operative Cancer Care at Jawaharlal Nehru Auditorium, AIIMS, New Delhi. Register: http://www.irchoncoanaesthesia.com/

Oct 23, 2017: 10 days Foundation course in Palliative Medicine for doctors in Trivandrum, Kerala. Contact: info@palliumindia.live-website.com Register: https://palliumindia.org/courses/foundation/ Last date to Apply: Oct 10

Nov 6, 2017: One month certificate course in Pain and Palliative Medicine for Doctors, Nurses, Social Workers and Volunteers in Hyderabad, Telengana. Contact: mnj.palliative@gmail.com

Nov 7, 2017: Six weeks certificate course in Palliative Medicine & Palliative Nursing (CCPPM, CCPN) in Trivandrum, Kerala. Register for CCPPM: https://palliumindia.org/courses/ccppm/ Register for CCPN: https://palliumindia.org/courses/ccpn/ Contact: info@palliumindia.live-website.com Last date to Apply: Oct 25

Nov 18-19, 2017: Advanced Therapeutics Course for Palliative Medicine at Karunashraya, Bangalore. Contact: jeremy.johnson@karunashraya.org or maria@karunashraya.org

Feb 23, 2018: IAPCON 2018, Jawaharlal Auditorium, AIIMS, New Delhi. Visit: http://www.iapcon2018.com/

Feb 24, 2018: 8th Congress on PAIN – South Asian Regional Pain Society. Last date to register: 1 January, 2018. Contact: bssp1997@gmail.com Website: www.bsspbd.com

For details on these programs, contact: info@palliumindia.live-website.com. Find out more at: palliumindia.live-website.com/courses

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Join Our Facebook Page

Pallium India’s Facebook page has over 5000 Likes. We regularly post articles related to palliative care from around the world.

Click here to Like our page!

We’re also on Twitter: @palliumindia

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image06Palliative Care Information Centre

Contact Pallium India’s Information Centre (9 am to 12 noon) for information related to palliative care and about establishments where such facilities are available in India.

Telephone: +91-9746745497 or E-mail: info@palliumindia.live-website.com
Address: Pallium India, Arumana Hospital, Perunthanni, Trivandrum

For more details, please visit: https://palliumindia.org/info-centre/

–

PARTING SHOT

Fold your hands and pay obeisance to this man; he has more God in him than in 99.99% people.

Meet Mr M Radhakrishna Pillai.

For the last 19 years he has been feeding the inmates in the rather well-known ward 9 of general hospital, Trivandrum. This ward houses destitutes with health issues.

There was a time when many of them have starved but for this man’s help.

The whole family is involved; his daughter does most of the cooking.

Pallium India was privileged to take part in their anniversary celebrations, last month.

The toolkit includes a handy social media guide, including World Hospice and Palliative Care Day draft tweets. For more information on World Hospice and Palliative Care Day, please visit: http://www.thewhpca.org/world-hospice-and-palliative-care-day

–

KUHS establishes Centre for Studies on Health Care Counseling and Palliative care

There is often a lot of talk about healthcare ignoring the human being. A lot of talk; but usually little action.

In a major step towards improving this situation, Kerala University of Health Sciences (KUHS) now establishes a University Centre with the potential to focus on human suffering and on information needs rather than just diseases.

KUHS becomes the first university in India not only to integrate palliative care into its undergraduate medical curriculum, but also to establish a centre dedicated to health care counseling and palliative care.

We congratulate and thank Dr MKC Nair, the Vice Chancellor of KUHS and his team for this timely action, modeling the way for health education in India.

The palliative care fraternity in Kerala now has the opportunity and responsibility to assist KUHS in implementation of this imaginative programme.

–

MetaECHO Conference 2017

Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes – ECHO is an innovative model that is rippling across the globe and improving access to care. Dr Sanjeev Arora, professor of gastroenterology at University of New Mexico, is the pioneer founder of the ECHO concept. He began ECHO by empowering community level practitioners in managing Hepatitis C. The aim is to demonopolize knowledge and allow the experience and best practices of experts to reach those practitioners working in the community where it is most applicable.

ECHO achieves this through a guided practice model using hub-and-spoke knowledge-sharing virtual networks, led by expert team and attended by practitioners from different settings who share similar patient concerns. It combines brief didactic presentations and case-discussions to communicate the nuances of the themes identified. TIPS began the 1st ECHO based training palliative care in India in Jan 2017 and is currently conducting four ECHOs on different themes in palliative care. (Click here for details on upcoming ECHO sessions.)

The 3rd MetaECHO conference was held at Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA from September 12th to 17th, with the theme – Infinite Possibilities. The event, coordinated by Dr Max Watson, brought in ECHOists from across the world who shared their experience of force multiplication of knowledge through his truly democratic platform. TIPS ECHO team – represented by Dr Nandini Vallath participated in a panel discussion on using ECHO for palliative care education. She presented an overview and five hey learnings from the experiences of conducting palliative care ECHO in India and India’s that targets the largest population, spanning the entire country of India and beyond. The other panelists were Dr Suresh Reddy and Sriram Yennu from MD Anderson who shared experience as the biggest cancer hospital in the world, with target population of specialist teams throughout Africa; and Chris Piromalli from Alaska who gave perspective of engaging American Indians and Alaska Natives through a multidisciplinary approach palliative care ECHO involving the Community Health Aides/Practitioners.

In ECHO all teach and all learn – Dr Sanjeev Arora

–

TIPS ECHO sessions on Pain Management

Sumitha T., Project Executive at Pallium India, writes:

Pallium India, through its Trivandrum Institute of Palliative Sciences – Extension for Community Health Outcome (TIPS-ECHO) program, is now propagating the concepts of palliative care throughout the country along with the stories of human lives in dire need for pain relief and palliative care in the 21st century.

In order to reach country’s 1.2 billion people, TIPS-ECHO was initiated under the mentorship of Dr. Nandini Vallath on 20th January 2017. ECHO was created by Dr. Sanjeev Arora from USA and this virtual learning is facilitated via “zoom” platform.

So far, we have conducted sessions on Treat That Pain, Methadone and Rehabilitation as an Essential Component of Pain Management. Psychological Aspects of Chronic Pain under the guidance of Dr. Chitra Venketesh started from 13th September 2017.

We are thankful to Dr. Arora, entire ECHO team in Delhi, Dr. Vidya Kumaraswamy for her brilliant coordination in the first sessions, all our faculty from India as well as abroad, our mentors and Dr. Sunilkumar, additional director of TIPS for helping us reach more as we believe that “learning is movement from moment to moment”.

Click here for TIPS-ECHO schedules.

[Caption: TIPS as the hub in the southernmost part of India and participants as spokes from all over the country.]

–

Sahayatra Palliative Care Awareness Ride

Pallium India, IAPC (Kerala), CET Cycle Club (CCC) and Indus Cycling Embassy, Trivandrum have jointly organized a palliative care awareness bicycle ride from Mannarkad, Palakkad to Kovalam, Trivandrum. The event was flagged off on September 29th and will terminate at Udaya Samudra, Kovalam at 5p.m. on October 2nd. The bicycle riders are being welcomed warmly at each location by district palliative care initiatives and palliative care enthusiasts.

The program was organized to spread the message of palliative care to the public, to declare palliative care as a right of every individual.

If you are in Trivandrum on October 2nd, do head to Pallium India (12 noon) or Kovalam (4 p.m.) to welcome the riders as they complete their mission!! Contact: 9746745502

–

Focus on palliative care at World Neurology Congress, Kyoto, Japan

Pallium India was privileged to be part of lively discussions to improve access to palliative care in neurological disorders at the World Neurology Congress in Kyoto, Japan from 16th to 21st September, 2017.

It was heart-warming to find that several Indian neurologists participated in the deliberations.

In addition to an erudite presentation on the current global status by Dr Borasio, palliative care in India and Japan received special attention.

–

IAPCON 2018

The 25th Annual Conference of the Indian Association of Palliative Care (IAPCON 2018) will be held from 23rd to 25th February, 2018, at Jawaharlal Auditorium, AIIMS, New Delhi. The theme of the conference is Create, Collaborate and Communicate.

Last date to submit abstracts: 30th October, 2017.

For more details on the Conference, please download the brochure.

Visit the conference homepage: http://www.iapcon2018.com/

–

Palliative Care Award 2017 for SAARC Countries Instituted by Cancer Aid Society

Cancer Aid Society invites Application / Nomination from Doctors, Paramedical Staff and Social Workers with demonstrative leadership in the field of Palliative Care for the Cancer Patients from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.

How to Apply

Apply through online form along with the references and verifiable evidences to be sent in one email to palliativecare@canceraidsocietyindia.org (media coverage/ pictures) in order to identify the leadership of the applicant/ nominee.

Last date of Application is 24.00 Hrs. (India Time) of 15th October 2017.

Palliative Care Award 2017 of Rs. 1,00,000/- will be presented at the 25th International Conference of the Indian Association of Palliative Care in February 2018 to be held at AIIMS New Delhi India.

Cancer Aid Society is an NGO in Special Consultative Status with United Nations ECOSOC, working across India since 1987 on Palliative Care, Advocacy, Prevention and Control of Tobacco, Cancer and other Non Communicable Diseases.

–

Vacancy: Project Manager at Vishakhapatnam, AP

Pallium India is looking for a committed, creative professional passionate about making a lasting difference in the health care of people.

The candidate will be based out of Vishakhapatnam, AP, and is expected to travel across AP and to other parts of India as and when required.

Project position: Project Manager
Location: Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh
Education: University degree in public health or social work or public policy
Experience: Minimum two years of proven professional experience in health care projects
Languages: Fluency in Telugu and English
Work type: Fixed term staff

Under the guidance and supervision of project heads, the job responsibility includes:

  • Facilitating the scaling up of palliative care across the state of Andhra Pradesh and other states of India
  • Advocacy, networking and partnership building targeting the objectives of the project
  • Documentation and reporting as per the project requirement

Interested candidates can send detailed and updated CV to sumitha@palliumindia.live-website.com

For more vacancies, visit our Careers page.

–

IAHPC announces Traveling Scholarships to the 2018 ALPC Congress, EAPC Research Congress and ICPCN Conference

The International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care (IAHPC) has announced the following scholarships:

In order to apply for a traveling scholarship, applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Have not received grants from IAHPC in the past 3 years
  • Be current IAHPC members. If you wish to apply and are not an IAHPC member, you may join by clicking here.

Preference will be given to applicants:

  • who have been IAHPC active members for two or more consecutive years.
  • whose institution is an IAHPC active member.
  • who are living in Lower, Lower-Middle and Upper-Middle income categories as per the World Bank income classification data.
  • who are dedicated full-time to palliative care in their current work.
  • graduated less than 10 years ago from university.
  • who have an accepted abstract for poster / oral presentation. Proof of acceptance is required.
  • who describe in their applications long term goals which lead to improvements in any or all of the following areas: service provision; education; availability of and access to medicines; and public policy.

This program offers funding for travel and registration only, applicants will need to secure funding from other sources to cover additional expenses.

More detailed information about the application process and the online form are available at the IAHPC website.

For information on how to apply please contact Genevieve Napier, IAHPC Manager of Programs and Projects at gnapier@iahpc.com.

–

Isolation, Loneliness and Depression

A new Singapore study has shown that social isolation and loneliness were closely associated with depressive symptoms in adults. Those who were lonely were more likely to be divorced, unemployed, widowed, have nonmental chronic conditions or previous depression. Loneliness was also associated with depressive symptoms independent of any social isolation indicator.

“The results of the study establish a significant and unique association of different social isolation indicators and loneliness with depressive symptoms in community-dwelling adults aged 21 and above,” the researchers wrote. The study drew data from the Population Health Index Survey targeted towards community-dwelling adults in Central Singapore. A total of 1,942 individuals participated in the survey.

Read the complete report here: Social isolation, loneliness tied to depressive symptoms in adults

–

Palliative care in diabetes

For anyone who associated with palliative care only in cancer: please see the article by thediabetescouncil.com You may not only be surprised to see that diabetes accounts for nearly 5% of palliative care needs globally; but also to learn that cancer forms only about one third of all. See https://www.thediabetescouncil.com/palliative-care-and-advanced-terminal-illness-for-patients-with-diabetes/

Thank you, Jasmine Williams, for sharing it with us.

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Video of the Month: Death is inevitable, but a bad death is not

The Economist: Death is inevitable, but a bad death is not–

Donate to Pallium India

 

The money you give will pay for essential free medicines for the poor, for their travel to the clinic or for schooling of their children, or other forms of care. Please give whatever you can. No amount is too small.

To donate, please visit: palliumindia.live-website.com/donate

Write to us: info@palliumindia.live-website.com / 9746745497

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Upcoming Events

Oct 14, 2017: International conference on Peri-operative Cancer Care at Jawaharlal Nehru Auditorium, AIIMS, New Delhi. Register: http://www.irchoncoanaesthesia.com/

Oct 23, 2017: 10 days Foundation course in Palliative Medicine for doctors in Trivandrum, Kerala. Contact: info@palliumindia.live-website.com Register: https://palliumindia.org/courses/foundation/ Last date to Apply: Oct 10

Nov 6, 2017: One month certificate course in Pain and Palliative Medicine for Doctors, Nurses, Social Workers and Volunteers in Hyderabad, Telengana. Contact: mnj.palliative@gmail.com

Nov 7, 2017: Six weeks certificate course in Palliative Medicine & Palliative Nursing (CCPPM, CCPN) in Trivandrum, Kerala. Register for CCPPM: https://palliumindia.org/courses/ccppm/ Register for CCPN: https://palliumindia.org/courses/ccpn/ Contact: info@palliumindia.live-website.com Last date to Apply: Oct 25

Nov 18-19, 2017: Advanced Therapeutics Course for Palliative Medicine at Karunashraya, Bangalore. Contact: jeremy.johnson@karunashraya.org or maria@karunashraya.org

Feb 23, 2018: IAPCON 2018, Jawaharlal Auditorium, AIIMS, New Delhi. Visit: http://www.iapcon2018.com/

Feb 24, 2018: 8th Congress on PAIN – South Asian Regional Pain Society. Last date to register: 1 January, 2018. Contact: bssp1997@gmail.com Website: www.bsspbd.com

For details on these programs, contact: info@palliumindia.live-website.com. Find out more at: palliumindia.live-website.com/courses

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Pallium India’s Facebook page has over 5000 Likes. We regularly post articles related to palliative care from around the world.

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We’re also on Twitter: @palliumindia

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image06Palliative Care Information Centre

Contact Pallium India’s Information Centre (9 am to 12 noon) for information related to palliative care and about establishments where such facilities are available in India.

Telephone: +91-9746745497 or E-mail: info@palliumindia.live-website.com
Address: Pallium India, Arumana Hospital, Perunthanni, Trivandrum

For more details, please visit: https://palliumindia.org/info-centre/

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PARTING SHOT

Fold your hands and pay obeisance to this man; he has more God in him than in 99.99% people.

Meet Mr M Radhakrishna Pillai.

For the last 19 years he has been feeding the inmates in the rather well-known ward 9 of general hospital, Trivandrum. This ward houses destitutes with health issues.

There was a time when many of them have starved but for this man’s help.

The whole family is involved; his daughter does most of the cooking.

Pallium India was privileged to take part in their anniversary celebrations, last month.

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