Palliative and Supportive Care
Our belief is that Palliative Care should be available to everyone with life-limiting illnesses and fully integrated into health care delivery systems.
……in Cancer Care
Palliative care improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing life-threatening illness by providing pain relief and management of other distressing and debilitating symptoms. Palliative care services are appropriate from the time of diagnosis of a life-threatening illness and throughout the course of the illness.
The relief of pain – physical, emotional, spiritual and social – is a human right,”
(W.H.O 2007)
……..in care of the elderly
Talking about “successful ageing” – meaning robust and active old age – implies that old people who are not robust and active are “unsuccessful”. While everyone would like to be active and robust in old age, there is a risk that people who don’t achieve that will be regarded as failures and blamed for their disability.
“care should focus on helping people retain meaning in their lives. Treatment should be targeted at controlling symptoms, not on prolonging life, and on helping patients to maintain human relationships and personal dignity.”
It is possible to provide, with very limited resources, care that is technically excellent and compassionate and that helps old or dying people keep meaning in their lives.
