Palliative Care Newsletter

NTNU launches European Palliative Care Research Centre

October 2009 03:17

A first-ever pan-European centre devoted to improving patient palliative care and end of life care was officially launched Thursday, October 15, at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) ,with the opening of the European Palliative Care Research Centre. The centre is based at NTNU's Faculty of Medicine and at St. Olavs Hospital/Trondheim University Hospital.

'We are too small and too few not to work together across national borders', says Professor Stein Kaasa, who is the leader of the new centre as well as a researcher at the NTNU Faculty of Medicine's Pain and Palliation Research Group. The formation of the new centre was announced at the 4^th International Trondheim Conference on Palliative Care, held in Trondheim on Oct. 15-16.

The centre will focus on coordinating efforts between groups and individual researchers across Europe, specifically Scotland, England, Italy, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland, along with the USA, Canada and Australia. Researchers hope to boost the amount of international multicentre studies, as well as to create an international PhD programme to educate young researchers in palliative care and to initiate and develop evidence-based guidelines for palliative care.

The Norwegian Cancer Society has awarded a major grant of 15 million NOK (1.8 million euro) to help establish the new centre. Additional support has been awarded by the Open Society Institute in the United States, the Floriani Foundation in Milan, Italy, and Nycomed, the pharmaceutical company.

'It is well acknowledged within the scientific field of palliative care that international collaboration is urgently needed in order to conduct sufficiently sized studies, as well as to evaluate the effect of new treatment strategies', says Dr. Augusto Caraceni, with the Italian National Cancer Institute and vice president of the European Association for Palliative Care. Caraceni has been named director of international affairs for the new centre. 'Such a research strategy will need funding. The establishment of the centre, through the very generous grant from the Norwegian Cancer Society, makes this possible.'

The centre will be based on an open invitation to all active researchers in palliative care to participate. It was established in Trondheim partly in recognition of the ability of the NTNU Faculty of Medicine's Pain and Palliation Research Group to quickly translate the results of clinical research into new patient treatment. 'I have been collaborating with the Pain and Palliation Research Group at the Faculty of Medicine, NTNU, for almost a decade' Caraceni said. 'The group in Trondheim is at the forefront in palliative care research in Europe and worldwide, with their capacity to plan and conduct translational research from bench to bedside, and their vision of a European research agenda across national borders is internationally recognized.'

http://www.ntnu.no/prc
Posted in: Healthcare News
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	Ukraine report

	Ukraine - World Hospice and Palliative Day events The aim of our events was to draw attention of Ukrainias to the palliative and hospice care which is a global challenge and integral part of the human rights issue. Traditionally (since 2006), there were several different events in Kyiv and some other towns in Ukraine where All-Ukrainian Association for Palliative Care has its branches. In Kyiv, with the support of Help the Hospices we have organized: The reception for key officials of Ministry of Health and Ministry of Labour and Social Policy as well as businessmen was organized. This was rather informal meetings which helped us to communicate and establish better contacts with key governmental structures which work in the sphere of palliative care. 20 persons participated. During the reception the resolutions about legislation improvement were done; the special topics of discussion were opioids and raise-awareness strategies in the sphere of palliative care. The organ music concert in St Alexander cathedral (roman-catholic church) was organized. The concert of Italian music of 17 century was dedicated by its organisers (Mrs Olga Dmitrenko) to palliative care. It was declared in the special announcement and printed brochure. Roughly, 200 persons participated. All-Ukrainain Association for Palliative Care has obtained support from the Kyiv metropolitan administration for the event which enabled free public values advertising (oral announcements about World Hospice and Palliative Care Day). So for one week special announcements were done 12 times per day. Every day more than 1.7 millions of citizens of Kyiv and guests use the Kyiv metropolitan. On the next day the press-conference was organised. It focused on the perspectives of palliative care development in capital of Ukraine. Today, in this megapolis live over 4.5 millions of people; each day (accordingly to the official data) no less than 13 people dye with cancer; 69 more dye from other causes. And only 130 hospice beds in 3 hospices and palliative care units in the city's hospitals help them to pass with dignity. There are no palliative care home service in Kiev. To solve this problem, All-Ukrainian Association for Palliative Care has initiated the pilot project of palliative care development within the framework of Kyiv social care program. Abovementioned hospices are in the structure of Kyiv health care program. Anyway, there are 10 elderly social care centers which provide home nursing, social and psychological care to more than 200 000 citizens of Kyiv. Association regards this as a good challenge to start the multidisciplinary cooperation between elderly social care centers and medical care facilities in Kyiv. 7 representatives of National mass-medias were present. It was underlined that palliative and hospice care is a global challenge and integral part of the human rights issue. Althogether, about 2000 people have been engaged in the events in Kyiv and regions. The success of the World Hospice and Palliative Care Day could be measured by: - feedback of theather performace guests who mentioned that they learned more about palliative and hospice care; - increasing number of All-Ukrainian Asociation for Palliative Care volunteers (14 persons); - participation of governmental officials in events and their resolutions to improve palliative care development in Ukraine. The World Day and Voices have had significant long term effect on development of palliative and hospice care movement in our country. Of course All-Ukrainian Association for Palliative Care organizes conferences, trainings and other events which are certain advocacy tool, as well, but World Day and Voices are perfect tools to engage many of those who are interested in palliative care. Thanks to events of All-Ukrainian Association for Palliative Care governmental officials, medical and social workers, businessmen, Church leaders, sport activists and other Ukrainian opinion-leaders were welcome and participated in our initiative. Alexander Wolf palliative care program director dzvony@yahoo.com The whole issue in Pdf