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NEWSLETTER
IAPC SECRETARIAT
Official Newsletter of the Indian Association of Palliative Care |
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MESSAGE
FROM THE SECRETARY |
Dear Friends,
We are back from the Central Council Meeting of IAPC at Bangalore. We had a full day to discuss and plan the activities of IAPC. One of the agenda was reviewing the Strategic Plan that we made in 2005. Some of the short term objectives were achieved and many are partly achieved or still to achieve. The broad goals for 2010 were
• 50% of the population to be aware of palliative care
• 20% of those in need to be receiving palliative care services
• 75% of states to be making morphine readily available to patients
• 50% of the IAPC membership to be nurses, social care staff, volunteers and others
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All these are grossly under achieved.
Except for some places where there is ‘hyper activity’ the palliative care development in the country has been slow. Our national coverage is still grossly inadequate. You can see the early results of a nation wide survey of existing palliative care services in this newsletter. I am not trying to paint a gloomy picture of palliative care scene in India. This is just to remind ourselves that we have “miles to go”. Though IAPC is sixteen years of age, I would say we are still pioneers because there still remains so much for us to achieve. And as pioneers we have to do justice to our selves and the generations to come by helping to develop sustainable and affordable palliative care programmes.
Our present work has given us so much credibility and social standing. How much have we been successful to take advantage of this situation to promote and influence developm- |
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ent of palliative care out side our institution or place of work? As pioneers we need to introspect.
It is high time that palliative care come out of the shell of charity. It should be a right of every one, not just some thing for which people have to beg. Palliative care, if we look at its basic principles, can be seen as a part of the larger picture of “dignity of life” which is a right of every person.
Another World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is approaching. What are we going to do on that day? Let us, as pioneers, take this opportunity to introspect, to take stock of the situation and to plan the future activities to take palliative care to those who need it and which is their right as well.
And please do share your thoughts, plans and actions with us.
Warm regards
Anil |
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CONFERENCE INFORMATION |
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IAPCON 2011 LUCKNOW |
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18th International Conference of Indian Association of Palliative Care will be held at Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow from 11th to 13th February 2011.
The theme of the conference is “Networking in Palliative Care”.
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For registration and other details
Contact:
Mr. Piyush Gupta
Organising Secretary, IAPCON 2011
Conference Secretariat, Cancer Aid Society
2-A, First Floor, Regency Avadh Complex,
Chowk, Lucknow-226003, UP, India
Phone: 91-522-2259157, 4043686, 3255278
log on to : www.iapcon2011.com or
Email to piyushgupta@canceraidsocietyindia.org
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Message from the president
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My dear Colleagues
Warm Greetings to you and your loved ones!
It is about 6 weeks since I assumed the mantle of leadership of our |
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association, thanks to your affection and trust. In the midst of the excitement is the worry that my team may not be able to match the expectations of all of you. Yet, we march forth with confidence, secure in the thought that the Good Lord is with us.Palliative care is becoming more important than ever before. Yet, there are a lot of misconceptions about it. The recent legislation on health care reforms in the USA brought out one such example; attempts by the Obama administration to provide funding for palliative care consultation, especially on end-of-life issues, met with resistance. They were called “death panels”. Nothing could be more untrue than this.A very interesting and thought provoking interview may be seen on the link democracynow.org:80/2010/3/24/palliative_care_pioneer_dr_diane_meier
It is time that we made attempts to encourage the starting of palliative care units in different parts of India. My team will work towards this. I sincerely request all members to join us in this gigantic task. |
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An important part of this is making available to those interested, a suitable course that will give a qualification in palliative medicine/care. Most courses are post MD fellowships. Efforts will be made to start more post- MBBS programmes.
The Cardiff University is offering Commonwealth Scholarships for the Diploma+ M Sc in Palliative Medicine and Palliative Care. Those interested may go to pallium.cardiff.ac.uk for details. The deadline is April 30th, 2010
Another incomplete task is setting standards for various palliative care services. We hope to make significant progress on this matter.
The theme for the next IAPC conference in Lucknow is “Networking”. I invite you to send in abstracts.
With warm regards
Dr. S. N. Simha
President, IAPC
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Message from the past president
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Excuse me, then! You know my heart; But dearest friends, alas! I must part. ~John Gay
Dear IAPC Members, I consider the IAPC Presidency was a gift of God to me and if I have done anything good during this period, it would be my gift to God. |
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As those close to me know, I am not at all good with goodbyes so I do apologize to those who feel offended. And is it a real goodbye in the real sense??!!
I have so many people to thank for their support and dedication during my Presidency at IAPC that it is impossible to do it on a personal level. I could go on listing people and groups but in the end the message would still be: ‘I have truly enjoyed my time as the Presidency of IAPC and have been very well supported with the work and outcomes we have achieved’. But I must also remind you that “Miles to go before IAPC sleeps”, with apologies to Robert Frost. (New Hampshire, 1923, Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening)
I leave the presidency of IAPC with great confidence in the people in charge here, knowing that they are capable of overcoming any hurdles that will come up, singularly, and more importantly, together.
We have managed to assemble a very competent and practical group that provides excellent support as the central executive team. This provides me with a sense of pride and gratitude that is indescribable. I truly am humbled to have worked with such a nice group of "we can make it happen people" and I am so proud of the achievements that we all have accomplished both in the policy and achievement at IAPC. The role and support from our overseas members can not be over emphasized. |
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For the team of IAPC, the efforts and contributions have been outstanding. I have learnt so much from my last three years of interaction and now possess a greater understanding of the difficulties that a work environment of IAPC, the government and the society. To those of you at the central executive that I had the opportunity to work and set goals for, I commend each of you for your achievements and hope that we all shall continue to succeed through our journey with IAPC.
But you have to bear with me my friends. I shall still be in the central executive of IAPC for the next three years as the past president and continue to take on the combined responsibility of upgrading IAPC to greater heights.
I wish all of us a very Healthy, Safe and Prosperous Year.
Thanks, regards and best wishes,
With warm regards
Prof. Sukdev Nayak
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IAPC Conference 2010 |
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Postal Cover release |
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The 17th International conference of Indian Association of Palliative Care concluded at Tiruchirappally , Tamil Nadu with the pledge to take essentials steps to develop services to care the suffering elder people in India. A declaration on the care of the elderly was formulated and released at the conference which is known as “Trichy Declaration.” This is considered as an |
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As recognition to Indian Palliative Care movement a First Day Postal Cover was released in a special function held during the conference. S. P. Ramalingam , Post Master Gerneral , Central Region , Trichy released the cover which was received by Mr. David Praill , Chief Executive, Help the Hospices, UK. |
important move by the national organisation in improving the care to the elder people in India. The declaration was formulated by the faculty members of the National faculty pool of Indian Association of Palliative Care.
More than 450 delegates from all over the globe participated in the three day conference from 12th to 14th February. The theme of the conference was “Care for the Older People”
The conference was inaugurated by Dr. Mayil Vahanam Natarajan, Vice Chancellor of Dr. M G R Medical University, Tamil Nadu. In his inaugural speech he promised that a one year post graduate fellowship course would be introduced at the university.
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A pre conference workshop for Doctors, Nurses and Social workers was held on 11th February. The pre conference CME was inaugurated by Dr. Kalaiselvi, the dean of Chennai Medical College, Trichy. 348 delegates participated in the CME programme. Dr. Rajagopal led the CME for doctors and Ms. Gilly Burn for the nurses. Dr. Rajashree coordinated the programme for social workers.
The Bruce Davis Gold Medal for young doctors in India was presented at the function. Dr. Bhaswant Dhani Reddy from PGIMER, Chandigarh was the winner this year. As he could not attend the conference his teacher, Dr. Rakesh Kapoor received the medal on his behalf. |
Trichy Declaration On Care for the Older People |
It has been known that the living standard of majority of older people in India is very poor. They do not have access to proper health care and it has been widely recognized that palliative care has an important role to play in the care of older people.
In this background, as the national umbrella organisation in Palliative care in India, Indian Association of Palliative Care decided to discuss the role of palliative carein the care of older people in India.
As a first step in this move it has been planned to prepare a declaration and for this a working group was formed consisting of the National faculty Members of Indian Association of Palliative Care. |
The members worked in groups on five different topics. After a series of discussions the meeting of working group members was held at the conference venue from 11th to 14th February. A draft declaration was prepared and which is approved by the General Body of IAPC held on 13th February as part of the conference.
The declaration affirms that the Association is committed to
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Encouraging the initiatives and individuals involved in palliative care to acquire more knowledge and skills in the care of older people so that they can play an effective role in this area.
- Facilitating the incorporation of appropriate philosophy and principles of palliative care in the care of older people by all concerned
- Advocacy – Initiate dialogue, discussion and collaboration with all the stakeholders and policy makers in this area
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Pre-Conference Workshop –IAPCON 2011
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Dr. Baswant Dhani Reddy Won Bruce Davis Gold Medal -2010 |
| Dr. Baswant Dhani Reddy from PGIMER Chandigarh has won the Bruce Davis Gold Medal in palliative medicine this year for young doctors in India. The Bruce Davis Gold Medal Examination is being conducted every year by Institute of Palliative Medicine, Kozhikode for young doctors in the country. |
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The final examination was held in January 2010 at Institute of Palliative Medicine for Doctors who had qualified in a preliminary screening test.
This award is founded by Mr. Wilfrid Bruce Davis from UK, who has extensively contributed to the development of palliative care movement in India .
The Bruce Davis Gold Medal Award includes a gold medal, a citation and cash award of Rs. 25,000 |
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During the 18th International conference of Indian Association of Palliative Care there will be two parallel Pre-Conference workshops on 10th February 2011. 1. Research and publication is the key of networking 2. Communication is the key of success in palliative care. In both the workshop the maximum number of participants allowed is 50. Kindly send registration as early as possible. Please send the registration form for pre-conference workshop only via email on iapcon2011@gmail.com |
Certificate Course in Essentials of Palliative Care |
The Basic Certificate Course in Essentials of Palliative Care introduced by Indian Association of Palliative Care introduced by Indian Association of Palliative Care is entering into its fourth year in 2010. Nearly 1800 medical and nursing professionals have already registered for the course since its launch in 2007. As in previous years , this year also there are two intakes through 26 regional centres in India and as before the first batch will start from 1st June 2010 and the second one will begin from 1st November 2010.
Dates to remember: Last date for submitting application
June batch : 1st May 2010
November batch : 1st October 2010.
Course fee : Rs.100/-
Doctors with MBBS/BDS (Including those doing their internship) and Nurses with BSc Nursing/GNM can apply for this eight weeks distance education course which has three days of contact session. A final evaluation will be held at the end of eight weeks.
For more details log on to www.palliativecare.in or
Email to nio.palliative.india@gmail.com
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International Palliative Care Network’s Poster Exhibition-2010 |
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This is an online poster exhibition open to all palliative care professional from across the globe. Lead authors |
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authors of all accepted posters will receive an e-certificate. The top 1st, 2nd and 3rd posters will receive US$ 500, US$300 and US$ 200 respectively. Participation is free. The poster is to be presented on a Power Point template that is provided. The last date of submission is August 31,2010. For details, please visit:http://www.pcon-e.com/community/pg/profile/posters2010 |
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The 2010 Australian and Newsland Society of Palliative Medicine (ANZSPM) conference will be held from 14th – 17th September 2010 at Adelaide , SA.
For more details contact:
Tel: +61 24973 6573
Email:anzspm@willorganise.co.au
Web: www.willorganise.com.au/anzspm2010 |
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WALK FOR LIFE -2010- STRIDE AGAINST CANCER |
A CANSUPPORT INITIATIVE
This year again, on Sunday the 7th of February, people from all walks of life came together to support the fight against cancer. Five thousand participants joined the ‘Walk for Life’ -2010- an initiative by Can support to create public awareness about cancer. The walk was flagged off at 9 am by Smt. Gursharan Kaur, wife of the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh and one of the patrons of Cansupport.. The Chief Minister of Delhi, Smt. Sheila Dikshit, also joined in the flagging off ceremony. Ms. Harmala Gupta , founder president of Cansupport welcomed the gathering. As well as the Ambassadors and high commissioners of different countries, film stars, sportspersons and several celebrities from various fields also participated
Jeannie , the wife of Mr. David Mulford , the ex- Ambassador of the USA and a survivor of breast cancer lead the “Lap of Honour” for cancer . |
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survivors. The walk started from the Central Civil Services Sports Ground on Vinay Marg, near Ashok Hotel, and proceeded down Shantipath from where it wound its way back to Vinay Marg; a distance of 4 kms.
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Palliative Care Service in Rajasthan |
The Palliative Care movement in Rajasthan is trying hard to overcome barriers and to cover more areas in the state. In majority of the regions of the state the concept of palliative care is even unknown. The only two training programmes running in the state for medical professionals in palliative care is the Certificate Course in Essentials of Palliative Care and the EPEC India. The Bhagwan Mahaveer Cancer Hospital and Research Centre is the only centre in the state conducting these courses.
Palliative Care Services available in the state
Bhagwan Mahaveer Cancer Hospital and Research Centre
The palliative care service was established in the year 1997 in the hospital and the department is providing care to an average of 250 patients per month. There are three consultants and eight residents working with palliative care service. The out patient clinic works from Monday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm. The team also includes a trained nurse, counsellor and psychologist.
Day Care Service
The day care unit is supported by a nurse and resident doctor for short half day /full day admissions for pain control /ascetic tap/ training attendants |
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Inpatient Service
Ten beds are available for inpatient service. The food and treatment (including medication/surgery/palliative radiotherapy/chemotherapy)of poor patients is taken care of by the hospital.
Patients needing hospice care are refereed to nearby hospice –the Khailashankar Durlabhji Avedna ashram
Home care
Home Care is provided with support of an NGO Awareness classes for public , nursing students and for social organisations are also being conducted.
Contact:
Dr.Anjum S Khan Joad
BMCHRC , Jaipur
Phone: 0171-2700107, 2702120
Fax: 0141-2702021 |
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Khailashanker Durlabhiji Avedna Ashram- Jaipur
Dedicated to Padmashree Kahail Shanker Durlabhji , the Khailashanker Durlabhiji Avedna Ashram basically caters to the needs of the senior citizens of Jaipur. The ashram has a well-equipped 80 –bed hospice and a senior citizen centre. It offers free medical and nursing care to the people with terminal illness. An average of 70 patients seeks medical care at the centre per month. Trained palliative care team provides essential care to the patients. Avedna Ashram has a day care center for the elderly people, which provide facilities such as free medical consultation, yoga, physiotherapy, acupuncture classes , indoor games and a well-stocked library and reading room.
Contact:
Dr. S. G Kabra,
Avedna Ashram, Jaipur
Phone: 0141-2556251
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Rabindranath Tagore Hospital- Udaipur
The Pain Clinic attached with Rabindranath Tagore Hospital in Udaipur has an Out Patient Clinic which sees an average of 60 – 90 patients per month. Contact: Dr. Lalit Kumar Raigar, Mob: 919414352823
Sawai Mansingh Hospital, Jaipur
Sawai Mansing Hospital provides out patient service in palliative care and an average of 70 patients per month attends the clinic. With the help of an NGO, a home care unit is also being operated regularly. Contact: Dr. Shantanu Sharma S.M.S Hospital , Jaipur Mob: 0982846180
Acharya Tulsi Regional Cancer Centre and Training Institute, Bikaner
Acharya Tulsi Regional Cancer Centre and Training Institute , Bikaner provides palliative care service in Bikaner. In addition to the out patient unit they provide a Day Care Service for patients. The unit is lead by Dr. Ashok Kalwar.
Contact: Dr. Ashok Kalwar Mob: 919314766190 |
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Pediatric Palliative Care in India |
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Pediatric Palliative Care is a developing area in India. Specialised services for children are rare in the country. Very few institutions are providing specialised palliative care to children suffering with life limiting illness. According to the statistics available from Pediatric Palliative Care Services across the country is clear that these services are helpful for patients and their family in dealing a tough time. It has been leant from the statistics that in all places where these services are available the number of patients’ dropouts is less and the number of surviving patients rate has been gradually increased. These services help patients and their family
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To reduce pain of the patients
- Provide confidence in facing the difficult period
- Continue treatment
- Increase survival rate
- Reduce dropouts in cases where patients need long term treatment
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Here is report from different pediatric palliative care services across India.
Report from MNJ IO&RCC
As part of its Comprehensive Pediatric Oncology MNJIO and RCC , Hyderabad initiated the Pediatric Palliative Care Program in july 2009. The primary goal of the program was to provide the best possible care for all terminally ill children both in the in-patient and out-patient settings. All efforts would be made to ensure the child and the family had the best possible symptomatic and emotional support.
The program is supported by Natco Trust which provides the salary support for two counselors and medications required for the children.
Outcome
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During the period of first 6-months , the program saw a total of 988 children visits
- The morphine consumption, which is a direct indicator of any pain relief program, was approximately 59 gms.
- In the past , any terminally ill child was sent home with the message that nothing further could be done at MNJ and it was best to take the child home. The staff had no idea regarding the problems they faced or the care they received prior to death. With the help of counselors, now the system is providing follow up in the case of every child and provides emotional and symptomatic support to the best. The support for the patient is now round the clock.
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• Also actively communicating with the local physicians and a total number of phone calls were 196 from July to November.
Support Group Meetings
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10 Support group meetings were conducted
- The patient drop out decreased significantly and the overall compliance to treatment improved.
- The patients and the families are better prepared to undergo the process of such extended treatment and even to face occasionally the unfortunate events of death.
Pediatric Palliative Care Workshop by Cankids
Cankids organised a pediatric palliative care workshop from 6-8th November 2009 at the Vasant Vihar Club , New Delhi.
The main aim of the workshop was to build capacity and to understand problems better for creating appropriate tools to provide improved palliative care support for children and their families. The workshop also planned to build good partnerships with cankids pediatric oncology doctors and palliative care specialists.
The work shop was led by Dr. Gayatri Palat , Program Director, Palliative Access (PAX) programme and consultant in Palliative Care at MNJ Institute of Oncology and RCC, Hyderabad, Dr. Sushma Bhatnagar, Head of Anesthesiology and Pain and Palliative Care at AIIMS , New Delhi.
Ms. Poonam Bagai, President Cankids gave an overview on Opioid and Morphine Availability issues in the country.
The workshop was guided by Dr. M.R. Rajagopal, the founder-chairman of “Pallium India”, Trivandrum, Dr. Aziza T Shad-Director of Geogetown University Hospital’s Division of Pediatric Hematology /Oncology. |
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Childrens Hospice Week |
| This year Children’s Hospice Week was organised from 15 to 22 of May in UK. This is UK’s biggest awareness and fund raising week for children’s hospice services. The website launched for this event www.childrenshospiceweek.org.uk provides details, downloadable resources and fundraising tips. As well as activities across UK at chidren’s hospices, the main event o f the week was the art exhibition named “This is my hero” organised at London. Children’s artworks and celebrity designed masks were exhibited. |
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day |
9th October 2010-06-2010
Theme: “Sharing the Care” to highlight the role of individuals such community members, family members and health professionals as well as different |
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In this day more than 1000 events will be held in 80 countries around the world. Details available from the website www.worldday.org Please send to us the activities in your organisation as part of the world day for publishing in the IAPC News letter and website www.palliativecare.in
Email: nio.palliative.india@gmail.com |
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Workshop on Management of Pain |
10th and 11th July, 2010
Organized by: The Department of Pain and Palliative Care, Cancer Institute (WIA) , Chennai
Venue: Cancer Institute, No.18, Sardar Patel Road,
(Adj. Children’s Park), Chennai-600036, India
. For more details and registration log on to www.chenpain.ibz.in |
IAHPC Travel Grant to International Congress on Palliative Care |
| The International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care (IAHPC) announces 10 scholarships to palliative care workers from developing countries to attend the 18th International Congress in Montreal on October 5-8-2010. For more details visit: http://www.hospicecare.com |
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| Printed and published by Dr.Anilkumar Paleri for Indian Association of Palliative Care. For Private Circulation Only. |
