Palliative care has been in the news lately with the launch of Marie Curie’s report ‘Triggers for Palliative Care,’ which has argued for a governmental commitment to provide adequate resources for palliative care services. The UK’s population is ageing rapidly, which will put more pressure on the limited resources available.
Training should play a key role in any palliative care strategy, the report goes on to says. The authors recommend: “A mandatory requirement for everyone involved in the healthcare of people with a terminal illness to undertake practice based palliative care training as part of their continuing professional development.”
Marie Curie’s Chief Executive, Dr Jane Collins, says greater training among health professionals is needed to not only deliver treatment but understand when palliative care should be delivered to those in need of it. She argues that a better understanding of palliative care would help ensure it is within reach: “Each year around 110,000 people in the UK don’t get the palliative care that they need. Many people who could benefit from palliative care earlier in their illness miss out because doctors, patients and their families do not realise when it is needed and incorrectly assume it is only for people who are in the final weeks or days of their lives.”
Online training could help providers keen to offer courses in this area. It offers the ability to deliver learning on tablets and smartphones, giving users the flexibility of learning at their own pace.
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