Antea Worldwide Palliative Care Conference

Rome, 12-14 November 2008

ABSTRACT FORM

Presenting author
Julia Downing
Email:
julia.downing@apca.co.ug
Phone
Mobile phone
Please underline the most
appropriate category for your
abstract
• Pain and other symptoms
• Palliative care for cancer patients
• Palliative care for non cancer
patients
• Paediatric palliative care
• Palliative care for the elderly
• The actors of palliative care
• Latest on drugs
• Pain
• Illness and suffering through
media
• Marginalisation and social stigma
at the end of life
• Palliative care advocacy projects
Educational and training needs for nurses working in palliative care
Authors (max 6, presenting author included): Julia Downing
Education and training are vital aspects in the implementation of an effective palliative care
programme. Nurses are in a unique position to shape the development of palliative care and are
key to integrating effective palliative care into all levels of care. It is therefore important that they
are equipped for their role and education and training is key to ensuring that nurses are ‘fit for
practice’.
Training should be at both the pre-registration and post-registration levels, available to both
specialists and generalists, and be able to be given in many different ways to ensure accessibility
and sustainability of the training. All nurses must be equipped with theoretical and practical
knowledge that allows them to function and initiate change in their clinical environment as
palliatve care is not only the prerogative of specialists; most nurses will provide palliative care
regardless of where they practice.
Palliative care education programmes should focus on Communication; Decision making;
Management of complications of treatment and the disease; Symptom control; Psychosocial care
of patient and family and Care of the dying, along with issues such as assessment, supervision,
management and reflective practice. Along with this, training should address attitudes, beliefs
and values, knowledge and skills. Programmes for nurses need to be flexible, and relevant to local
needs and environments. Methods of training could include conferences, self-study programmes,
computer and web-based approaches, face-to-face taught programmes, and clinical placements.
All training for nurses focused on the provision of care should be combined with an appropriate
clinical learning experience. Supervision and mentorship are vital elements of any palliative care
training programme for nurses and help the nurses feel supported and encouraged.
Although challenges exist to the provision of good palliative care education and training
programmes these can be overcome. Monitoring and evaluation of training programmes is
essential and will help to assess whether the programmes are ‘fit for purpose’ and preparing
nurses for their role in palliative care.

• Prognosis and diagnosis

communication in
different cultures
• Communication between doctor-
patient and patient-
equipe
• Religions and cultures versus
suffering, death and
bereavement
• Public institution in the world:
palliative care policies
and law
• Palliative care: from villages to metropolies

• Space, light and gardens for the terminally ill patient

• End-of-life ethics
• Complementary therapies Session: Core curricula
• Education, training and research
• Fund-raising and no-profit Chair of the session: Dott. Giuseppe Casale, Dott. Franco De Conno
• Bereavement support
• Volunteering in palliative care
• Rehabilitation in palliative care
• Core curricula