From the President’s Desk

Dr. Sushma Bhatnagar

Hello Friends,

I trust that each of you have completed your preparations for the upcoming 31st Annual International Conference of the Indian Association of Palliative Care (IAPCON 2024), set to take place at the Gujarat Cancer and Research Institute (GCRI), Ahmedabad, Gujarat, between Friday, 9th February, 2024, and Sunday, 11th February, 2024. Pre-conference workshops have been scheduled for Thursday, 8th February, 2024, at GCRI. I am sure that IAPCON is undoubtedly the much-anticipated event that everyone from the Palliative Care Fraternity in India looks out for.

This year’s conference holds special significance as we return to the roots of our history, Ahmedabad; the city where IAPC was born in 1994. We are fortunate to have Dr M T Bhatia, the founder Secretary of IAPC, joining us at IAPCON 2024 to deliver a plenary session which will take us on a journey down memory lane. I encourage you to register for IAPCON if you haven’t done so already. For further information, updates and to register for the IAPCON 2024, please click here.

I also extend a warm invitation to all the members of the IAPC, to participate in the IAPC’s upcoming Annual General Body Meeting (AGBM) scheduled to be held at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, 10th February, 2024, at the conference venue. Several important matters including the Resolution on Academy of Palliative Medicine will be discussed during the AGBM. Further details about the AGBM’s agenda can be found in the ‘Announcements and Messages from the IAPC’ section of this newsletter. Please note that elections for the 2 positions of Central Council Members from the North Zone will take place between 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on the same day. Complete details regarding the elections can also be found in the ‘Announcements and Messages from the IAPC’ section.  

I would like to remind you that the last call for submission of proposals to host IAPCON 2026 is just around the corner. Submit your proposals in the requested and prescribed format to the Secretary, IAPC, at iapcagbm@gmail.com before 5 p.m. on Saturday, 3rd February, 2024, to grab the opportunity and contribute towards the advancement of palliative care in your region. Please click here for further information regarding this.

The IAPC’s infographic for this month sheds light on a very important topic, ‘Self-care for Palliative Care Professionals’. Please click here to view the infographic’s published till date.

Please join me in congratulating Mr Mohankumar Thambad (Dharwad, Karnataka), Ms Rashmi Gupta (Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh), and Dr Suhana Sulfiker (New Delhi) for securing the ‘People’s Choice Award’ as a part of the IAPC’s special initiative, ‘Pictures to Moments – Together for palliative care’. Further details can be found in the ‘Announcements and Messages from the IAPC’ section of this newsletter.

I am excited to bring to your attention to the various training programs that are underway across India in January, 2024. I take pride in presenting a compilation of these reports in the newsletter in the ‘Education and Training Section’ of this newsletter. On behalf of the IAPC, I extend my heartfelt gratitude to all those who are working tirelessly to design and deliver these crucial training programs across the country.  

My heartiest congratulations to our colleagues and fellow organisations for their awards and accomplishments. I would like to also share with pride that the WHO has praised Kerala and Telangana for their approach in caring for the terminally ill. Please visit the ‘Awards and Recognitions’ section of this newsletter for further details and to celebrate them.

The IAPC’s exclusive article’s section stands out consistently due to the unique nature of the stories and experiences which are so generously shared by our dear authors. My sincere gratitude to each of our contributors. This month’s newsletter features articles from:

Don’t forget to join us at 2:50 p.m. on Wednesday, 14th February, 2024, for a national multilingual edition of ‘Singing for the Stars’, which will be presented by Ms Narssimhan Kannan (A Vocalist and a Performing Artist).  

Looking forward to meeting you all very soon in Ahmedabad!

With best regards,

Dr. Sushma Bhatnagar
President, IAPC