A report on activities in the Philippines
Written by Dr Karin E. Garcia, Clinical Associate Professor, University of Philippines College of Medicine; Head, Home and Hospice Center, Manila Doctor’s Hospital
Held on 16 October 2014 at the Buenafe Auditorium of the University of the Philippines-College of Medicine, the forum was attended by 120 participants from various backgrounds. They consist of physicians from multiple specialties (e.g. family medicine, ENT, oncology), general practitioners, as well as nurses and allied health professionals (e.g. therapists, nutritionists). There were also participants from the non-medical disciplines, including medical social workers, students, non-health care professionals and volunteers. The forum tackled topics surrounding the development of palliative care in Asia-Pacific and the Philippine hospice initiative. It was a great pleasure for us to have an open forum wherein our invited guest speakers, Dr Cynthia Goh, Chairman of Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network, and Dr Agnes Bausa-Claudio, family and palliative care medicine specialist, participated with much interest.
We are happy to share that the following objectives of the forum were met:
- To discuss current trends in palliative care both from the local and international scene
- To discuss learning opportunities and academic developments in palliative care
The Southern Mindanao-End of Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC)
Following the forum, a nursing consortium was held on 17-18 October 2014 at the Southern Philippines Conference Room in Davao City. This event was attended by 70 nurses wherein 60 % came from government hospitals. Davao is a city in Southern Philippines that shows promising agendas in Hospice and Palliative Care. It is one of the two cities which offer fellowships in palliative care for MDs. It is inspiring to learn that a palliative group headed by Dr Rojim Sorrosa is also helping in the training of nurses.
We are happy to share that the following objectives were also met:
- To increase knowledge and awareness about palliative and hospice care.
- To improve Networking by identifying potential networks among nursing groups in the various settings, namely the hospitals and OPD clinics.
- To improve nurses’ competencies in end-of-life care
Summit on Hospice and Palliative Care
This summit, jointly organized by the National Hospice and Palliative Care (Hospice Philippines) and Philippines Cancer Society, is a very important undertaking in the Philippines palliative care movement. Held on 15 October 2014, the aim of the summit is to meet leading stakeholders in palliative care from the local and international scene in order to unify each one's role in helping to strengthen palliative care in the Philippines health care system.
It is an honor to have the following attendees with us.
- Department of Health, represented by the Assistant Secretary of Health, Dr Enrique Tayag
- World Health Organization (WHO), represented by Dr Julie Lyn Hall, country representative to the Philippines
- Asia Pacific Hospice Network, represented by Prof Cynthia Goh, Chairman
- Hospice Philippines, represented by Dr Agnes Bausa-Claudio, President
- Congresswoman Linabelle Villarica, proponent of the “END OF LIFE CARE” bill in the legislation. The bill will enable all Filipinos to acquire quality end of life care which is absent at this present moment.
One major output of the summit is the inclusion of end of life care in the Philippine health care insurance.
