Palliative Care in India - 2023 Initiative

We are actively involved in enhancing Palliative and Hospice Care in India, in collaboration with Pallium, an Indian NGO deeply committed to fostering and promoting these essential services. A key component of our partnership involves delivering webinars and lectures focused on palliative and hospice care to students attending medical and nursing colleges across India.

A particular emphasis is placed on encouraging formal training in these vital disciplines among doctors and nurses currently serving in hospice centers, with an increased focus on regions like Tamil Nadu and Meghalaya. To strengthen our impact, we are collaborating with Pallium to offer training courses in local languages for nurses, social workers and volunteers, aiming to broaden the professional workforce in this field. 

In addition to self contained palliative care centers, we are encouraging hospitals to integrate a palliative and hospice care department into their mainstream delivery of healthcare so these services would be easily accessible to all in need. We are actively consulting with hospitals in collaboration with Pallium, to guide them through the process of implementing the new department.

We are also dedicated to raising awareness about palliative and hospice care among both medical professionals and the general public, leveraging social media to achieve this goal. Moreover, we are steadfast in our advocacy efforts to convince more medical and nursing colleges in India to integrate a palliative and hospice care elective into their respective curriculums. Concurrently, we are expanding our reach to Tamil Nadu, striving to support the local communities there.

Lastly, we’re organizing a network of physicians within the Indian diaspora to deliver telehealth support to doctors, patients, and families in India, providing them with crucial assistance and insight. This comprehensive approach enables us to better address the pressing need for improved palliative and hospice care across India.