- 300 – 601 Sixth St., New Westminster, BC V3L 3C1
- 604-553-4866
- office@bc-cpc.ca
News
News
The COVID-19 pandemic is a challenging time particularly for people with serious illness conditions and palliative care needs, as well as their families and friends. Those who become ill during the pandemic may prefer to stay at home rather than going to hospital.
The BC Centre for Palliative Care (BC-CPC) is recruiting people who are currently caring for people with serious illness (such as cancer, dementia, motor-neuron disease, end-stage kidney or lung disease, heart disease and stroke) and palliative care needs at home to become a Patient Partner.
Many clinical groups in B.C. are developing informational materials such as pamphlets and videos for families and friends to support and care for people in their community. These materials are being produced very quickly, in anticipation of a potential surge of health care needs.
Patient partners must be willing to be “on-call” to provide very rapid feedback on materials that are in development by various organizations. Partners would provide input via videolink or phone on materials during development or provide feedback within 1-2 days.
The BC Centre for Palliative Care (BC-CPC) works with partners in the health system and community to accelerate best practices and promising innovations in palliative care and supports. They strive to help British Columbians affected by serious illness have the best quality of life possible.
Time frame: ASAP-May / June 2020
Recruiting deadline – April 3, 2020
Contact: Kathleen Yue, Clinical Lead, Education BC Centre for Palliative Care kyue@bc-cpc.ca
COVID-19 Pandemic
Message from BC Centre for Palliative Care
This is a challenging time for all of us, particularly for people with serious conditions and palliative care needs, as well as their families and friends.
The hospice palliative care force across the province including palliative care doctors, nurses, social workers, psychologists, and spiritual specialists as well as hospice societies’ volunteers and staff are well trained, experienced, resilient and ready to support the comprehensive needs of people, families and communities when serious illness strikes. They have been doing so for years.
There is an immense need, like never before, for compassion, support, and care in our communities. It is inspiring to hear everyday about people coming up with innovative ideas – compliant with social distancing – to make us feel connected and supported in this difficult time. We will continue to monitor the situation and update the resources we gathered below for the general public, people with serious illnesses, and clinicians. Please stay in touch.
Remember!
In this rapidly evolving situation, make sure that your health-care wishes, preferences and choices are known to your family, carers and/or health-care providers. Start Your Advance Care Planning Now!
The Coronavirus is a chance to have the conversations we all need. Read or listen to the article published on this by The Globe and Mail
Resources that can help you start your Advance Care Planning can be found here
COVID-19 infection can cause illness ranging from a very mild, cold-like illness to a severe lung infection. Symptoms can include:
-Fever
-Cough
-Sore throat
-Runny nose
-Muscle ache
-Headache
-Difficulty breathing (shortness of breath)
If you have any of these symptoms, use the BC COVID-19 self-assessment online questionnaire to know what you should do next.
Visit the following resources for more information on COVID-19:
–HealthLink BC’s COVID-19 website
–BC Centre for Disease Control
-COVID-19 videos on Vancouver Coastal Health YouTube channel
–Fraser Health’s COVID-19 webpage
–Vancouver Island Health’s COVID-19 webpage
–Interior Health’s COVID-19 webpage
–Northern Health’s COVID-19 webpage
To protect yourself while out in public, wash your hands frequently and maintain a distance of about 2 metres from others. Public health officials’ advice is to stay at home and avoid social gathering to stop the virus. Avoid visiting people in hospitals or long-term care centres if they are sick or at high risk.
For non-medical information on COVID-19 covering everything from travel recommendations to social distancing, call 1-888-COVID19 (1-888-268-4319) or via text message at 604-630-0300. Information is available in different languages, 7:30 am – 8:00 pm.
Safe Seniors, Strong Communities
Through the new Safe Seniors, Strong Communities program, seniors can request volunteer help with grocery shopping, meal prep, and prescription pick-up, or receive friendly check-in calls by simply dialing 2-1-1 or filling in an online form at www.bc211.ca. Once a senior contacts bc211, they will be connected with a volunteer who can help them. This service will be available seven days a week during daytime hours. See BC government news release for further details.
-April 3, 2020 Fraser Health Authority released Regional Order Set for Actively Dying Protocol: Acute Care Addendum COVID-19 CRISIS ORDERS. A sample is available here.
-The UBC Faculty of Medicine Division of Palliative Care is the provincial repository for documents and links related to palliative care for people with Covid-19.
-Centre to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) has organized a COVID-19 response toolkit
-Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA)’s statement on COVID-19 and link to the Federal Government of Canada’s COVID-19 information page.
–BC Centre for Palliative Care resources to help clinicians have advance care planning conversations and integrate an early approach to palliative care for seriously ill patients.
-Pallium Canada, in collaboration with the Canadian Medical Association (CMA), is providing free access to essential education on palliative care for all health care professionals in response to COVID-19. For the next 3 months, 6 Learning Essential Approaches to Palliative Care (LEAP) modules are available for free to all health care professionals.
–Pandemic palliative care: beyond ventilators and saving lives in Canadian Medical Association Journal discusses a COVID-19 palliative care plan that has been created by a group of palliative care physicians. A podcast interviewing the article’s authors is available to listen to on SoundCloud.
–The Importance of Addressing Advance Care Planning and Decisions About Do-Not-Resuscitate Orders During Novel Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19). This article published in JAMA discusses how part of the response to COVID-19 should include high-quality discussions around advance care planning and goals of care.
-Tamarack Institute has compiled a list of community building stories and ideas in response to COVID-19.
-Through the new Safe Seniors, Strong Communities program, seniors can request volunteer help with grocery shopping, meal prep, and prescription pick-up, or receive friendly check-in calls by simply dialing 2-1-1 or filling in an online form at www.bc211.ca. Once a senior contacts bc211, they will be connected with a volunteer who can help them. This service will be available seven days a week during daytime hours. See BC government news release for further details.
Feb 12, 2020
The BC Centre for Palliative Care invites organizations who provide health-care or community support services to persons living with dementia and their family caregivers and/or deliver Advance Care Planning education for the public to complete this short survey.
The survey is part of a project funded by Public Health Canada and led by the BC Centre for Palliative Care in collaboration with Alzheimer’s Society of BC, Family Caregiver of BC, United Way and academic researchers. The project aims to support people living with dementia and their family/friend caregivers to engage in advance care planning activities delivered by local community organizations. The initiative’s products includes a community training program and a toolkit of resources for the community and public.
Click Here to complete the survey. Please note that the survey will be closed on February 28, 2020.
If you would like more information about the project, please contact Dr. Eman Hassan (ehassan@bc-cpc.ca)
We would greatly appreciate it if you could share this email widely with community organizations or groups in your network.
Feb 10, 2020
The BC Centre for Palliative Care partnered with Victoria Hospice and Canuck Place Children’s Hospice to host the first ever ECHO session for Palliative and Psychosocial professionals from across BC!
On February 7, thirty-one participants, including social workers, counsellors and spiritual health practitioners working with people affected by life-limiting illness “met” each other online to discuss their learning needs and expectations for the group.
The participants were from all over the province and work in oncology, long term care, palliative units, home care and renal. An exciting first step in building community and enhancing practice using technology. Participants will have monthly on-line sessions which will start with sharing how they have incorporated new knowledge into practice since the previous session. Sharing is followed by a short presentation about incorporating new evidence into practice with topics such as MAiD, complicated grief, and trauma-informed practice. Third, they will discuss an anonymized patients/family case study related to the topic of the day. The sessions will close with recommendations for management of the case.
Friday’s participants were excited to have the opportunity to connect with others in similar roles, to learn from each other and to stay current in evidence-based practice.
For information about the participation in future ECHO sessions, please contact Stephanie Stuerle sstuerle@bc-cpc.ca.
Feb 7, 2020
Released: Engaging Stakeholders to Improve Policy and Access to Quality Palliative Care in Canada
The BC Centre for Palliative is pleased to be a stakeholder in the national palliative care policy conversations between the public, researchers, and health system leaders. The newly released Palliative Care Matters study is positioned to inform the development, implementation, and evaluation of the 2018 Framework on Palliative Care in Canada (Health Canada, 2018). The palliative care action plans will continue to work towards improved access to high-quality palliative and end-of-life care for all Canadians.
Click here to view the policy.
Jan 15, 2020
BC Centre for Palliative Care is pleased to release The Framework for Palliative Care Education and Training in British Columbia. It is the result of a collaboration of health authorities, health care agencies, universities, BC Ministry of Health, palliative care and hospice organizations throughout B.C.
The framework’s purpose is to provide a foundational structure for palliative education planning on a provincial scale, by describing a vision, guiding principles, pillars and goals. It may serve as a shared resource for all parties with a responsibility for palliative care education in B.C., to help shape decision making and planning within the B.C. context.
Throughout the consultation process to develop this framework, it has been evident that stakeholders are committed to working together to enable quality palliative care in every sector and region of B.C. This framework is an initial step towards province-wide health care providers who are skilled and confident to provide palliative care.
Click here to view the framework.
Dec 16, 2019
The BC Centre for Palliative Care was pleased to host Dr. Tomoyuki Dobata and Dr. Satoko Hotta from Japan for two days of shared learning about how BC is adopting and adapting the concept of the global Compassionate Communities movement.
Dr. Eman Hassan, our executive director, invited several Compassionate Community Champions in BC to share their experiences with our Japanese guests. On December 12th, Camp Kerry, New West Hospice Society, and Compassionate Neighbourhood Health Partners Society met with Dr. Dobata and Dr. Hotta and each explained how they were able to create and mobilize compassionate, supportive networks for individuals and families affected by various illness and end-of-life issues. On December 13th, Melody Jobse, Community Engagement, accompanied the guests in a visit to Canuck Place Children’s Hospice, the provinces’ hospice palliative care provider for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. Later in the day, Dr. Dobata and Dr. Hotta where inspired to meet with L3 group which included young adults whose serious illnesses have not stopped them from living full, independent lives.
Nov 25, 2019
New Resources to Support the Legal Processes of Advance Care Planning in Canada.
The “Living Well, Planning Well” toolkits are two complementary resources about the legal processes and requirements of Advance Care Planning in Canada.
Public Toolkit
The “Living Well, Planning Well” public resource is designed to support public understanding and navigation of the legal processes of Advance Care Planning in Canada.
The toolkit was co- developed by Speak Up and BC Centre for Palliative Care. A national Advisory Committee of legal professionals, health care providers, and patient and caregiver representatives supported its development.
Funding for this resource was provided by the Canadian Bar Association’s Law for the Future Fund grant program.
English version
French version
Lawyer’s Toolkit
The “Living Well, Planning Well” legal toolkit is designed to help lawyers and their clients go through the process of ACP.
The toolkit was created by Speak Up and two legal firm partners: TorkinManes (Toronto, ON) and HarperGrey (Vancouver, BC).
Funding for this resource was provided by Health Canada as part of a $1.9 million funded project over three years to help people living in Canada prepare for their future health care needs.
English version
French version
Nov 19, 2019
Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association Releases An Updated National Framework for Advance Care Planning in Canada
The 2019 Pan-Canadian Framework for Advance Care Planning was developed by the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association with input from over 300 stakeholders from across Canada.
The BC Centre for Palliative Care participated in the process of creating and reviewing the Framework through the Centre’s membership in the National ACP Advisory Committee and Capacity Building Task Group.
The 2019 Pan-Canadian Framework sets a new strategy that will help people move from thinking that Advance Care Planning is good idea to actually having the important conversations about the future health-care plans.
The framework positions Advance Care Planning as a normal part of the life journey giving all people in Canada regular opportunities throughout their lives to express their wishes for their future care. The framework strives to reach people at different ages and stages of life and recognizes the critical role that culture plays in how people view health-care decisions.
The structure of the 2019 framework focuses more on broadening partnerships, and promoting further collaboration among different jurisdictions (local, provincial/territorial, national) and systems (health, law, social services, life planning) to support Advance Care Planning.
View and download the framework.
Nov 12, 2019
Healthy Aging Summit
The BC Centre for Palliative Care was a participate at the Healthy Aging Summit on November 7-8, 2019. Dr. Eman Hassan, executive director, and the team were pleased to explore, along with other provincial organizations, healthy aging initiatives in B.C.
Nov 8, 2019
Serious Illness Conversation Training in Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan Cancer Agency (SCA) hosted Train the Trainer for Serious Illness Care: More, Earlier, Better Conversations on November 6, 2019 in Regina Saskatchewan.
Bryan Jorgensen, Director of Supportive Care and Sandra Goodman-Chartier, Project Lead for Early Palliative Integrated Care (EPIC) were instrumental in bringing the vision into reality. “We took our first formal steps as an Agency towards enhancing our communication with patients, families and each other as interdisciplinary team members.”
Master Coaches of the BC Serious Illness Conversation Initiative, Dr. Gillian Fyles and Elizabeth Beddard-Huber, were invited by the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency to mentor the training of four Master Trainers in Saskatchewan: Dr. Michelle Ferguson, Radiation Oncologist, Jennifer Sanderson, RN, Dr. Osama Ahmed, Medical Oncologist and Lina Esmail, RN in the Serious Illness Care Program. A further 18 facilitators and 34 clinicians were trained to teach and use the Serious Illness Conversation Guide in clinical practice. SCA plans to lead future Clinician Workshops in both Saskatoon and Regina.
Congratulations to the Saskatchewan team for their ongoing commitment to providing person-centred care through Serious Illness Conversations.
Nov 5, 2019
Remembering Dr. Jennifer Kryworuchko
The team at BC Centre for Palliative Care is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Jennifer Kryworuchko, Friday October 25, 2019. She will be sorely missed by all of us who had the privilege of getting to know her. Jennifer always demonstrated a deep dedication to furthering the knowledge of a palliative approach to care, especially in the context of shared decision-making between patients and health-care professions.
As a core team member, she travelled to Boston to learn from the developers about the Serious Illness Conversations program. Her guidance was influential in helping to implement and teach the Serious Illness Conversation Program Initiative in British Columbia.
As a Principal Investigator in our peer-facilitated Advance Care Planning research project, Jennifer was integral in the success of the project. Her guidance and leadership supported the development and evaluation of this public education model, which has been recognized nationally as a valuable innovation and spread to over 60 communities across British Columbia.
As an Associate Professor of the School of Nursing at UBC, Jennifer shared her knowledge with nursing students and led the work to modify the Clinician Reference Guide for use by nurses and allied health on how to have serious illness conversations in the process of care.
The legacy of her contributions will continue to shape education and nursing practice. Our thoughts are with her family at this time. – The BC Centre for Palliative Care Team
For more information on the work and legacy of Dr. Jennifer Kryworuchko, please visit the UBC in Memoriam Announcement.
Oct 23, 2019
Upcoming – National Bereavement Day
November 19, 2019, is the annual National Bereavement Day in Canada. On this day, the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA) invites all Canadians to think about those who have passed away from our lives and help advocate for support at local, provincial, and national levels for grieving Canadians.
“Grief impacts all aspects of our lives,” and CHPCA is encouraging Canadians to cope with their grief by supporting each other through living and grieving. This year’s theme is “Coping with grief, together through living and grieving” The 2019 digital campaign aims to encourage individuals and groups to learn about grief and bereavement, this year CHPCA highlights the importance of coping with grief and encourages all Canadians to support those living with grief and bereavement.
Click here to download this year’s resources and share them with your friends, family and loved ones who are experiencing grief.
Oct 1, 2019
Dr. Eman Hassan is Appointed Executive Director of BC Centre for Palliative Care
Marc Pelletier CEO of the Institute for Health System Transformation and Sustainability is very pleased to announce that Dr. Eman Hassan has been appointed executive director of BC Centre for Palliative Care (BCCPC), effective October 1st. Dr. Hassan has served with the Centre for the past five years, as a public health consultant, director of public health initiatives, and acting executive director.
See full news release here.
Sept 24, 2019
CHPCA Best Poster Presentation
At the 2019 Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Conference Kathleen Yue won best poster presentation for her poster titled “Choosing Educational Resources to Help Build Capacity for Palliative Care”. The poster showcases a tool developed by BC Centre for Palliative Care to help health-care professionals determine which B.C. educational resources best address palliative competencies. Kathleen Yue is the education and partnership lead for BC Centre for Palliative Care.
Sept 19, 2019
Dr. Doris Barwich – Balfour Mount Champion Award Recipient
Dr. Doris Barwich was awarded the Balfour Mount Champion Award presented at the 2019 Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Conference on September 19th. The award recognizes her dedicated leadership, commitment to excellence in knowledge, championing, advocating and advancing hospice palliative care and end-of-life care in Canada. Dr. Barwich was the inaugural executive director and currently serves as the medical director at BC Centre for Palliative Care.
COVID-19 Pandemic
Message from BC Centre for Palliative Care
This is a challenging time for all of us, particularly for people with serious conditions and palliative care needs, as well as their families and friends.
The hospice palliative care force across the province including palliative care doctors, nurses, social workers, psychologists, and spiritual specialists as well as hospice societies’ volunteers and staff are well trained, experienced, resilient and ready to support the comprehensive needs of people, families and communities when serious illness strikes. They have been doing so for years.
There is an immense need, like never before, for compassion, support, and care in our communities. It is inspiring to hear everyday about people coming up with innovative ideas – compliant with social distancing – to make us feel connected and supported in this difficult time. We will continue to monitor the situation and update the resources we gathered below for the general public, people with serious illnesses, and clinicians. Please stay in touch.
Remember!
In this rapidly evolving situation, make sure that your health-care wishes, preferences and choices are known to your family, carers and/or health-care providers. Start Your Advance Care Planning Now!
The Coronavirus is a chance to have the conversations we all need. Read or listen to the article published on this by The Globe and Mail
Resources that can help you start your Advance Care Planning can be found here
COVID-19 Resources for Everyone
COVID-19 infection can cause illness ranging from a very mild, cold-like illness to a severe lung infection. Symptoms can include:
- Fever
- Cough
- Sore throat
- Runny nose
- Muscle ache
- Headache
- Difficulty breathing (shortness of breath)
If you have any of these symptoms, use the BC COVID-19 self-assessment online questionnaire to know what you should do next.
Visit the following resources for more information on COVID-19:
- HealthLink BC’s COVID-19 website
- BC Centre for Disease Control
- COVID-19 videos on Vancouver Coastal Health YouTube channel
- Fraser Health-COVID-19 webpage
- Vancouver Island Health’s COVID-19 webpage
- Interior Health’s COVID-19 webpage
- Northern Health’s COVID-19 webpage
To protect yourself while out in public, wash your hands frequently and maintain a distance of about 2 metres from others. Public health officials’ advice is to stay at home and avoid social gathering to stop the virus. Avoid visiting people in hospitals or long-term care centres if they are sick or at high risk.
For non-medical information on COVID-19 covering everything from travel recommendations to social distancing, call 1-888-COVID19 (1-888-268-4319) or via text message at 604-630-0300. Information is available in different languages, 7:30 am – 8:00 pm.
COVID-19 Resources for All Clinicians
- The UBC Faculty of Medicine Division of Palliative Care is the provincial repository for documents and links related to palliative care for people with Covid-19.
- Centre to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) has organized a COVID-19 response toolkit
- Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA)’s statement on COVID-19 and link to the Federal Government of Canada’s COVID-19 information page.
- BC Centre for Palliative Care resources to help clinicians have advance care planning conversations and integrate an early approach to palliative care for seriously ill patients.
Feb 12, 2020
The BC Centre for Palliative Care invites organizations who provide health-care or community support services to persons living with dementia and their family caregivers and/or deliver Advance Care Planning education for the public to complete this short survey.
The survey is part of a project funded by Public Health Canada and led by the BC Centre for Palliative Care in collaboration with Alzheimer’s Society of BC, Family Caregiver of BC, United Way and academic researchers. The project aims to support people living with dementia and their family/friend caregivers to engage in advance care planning activities delivered by local community organizations. The initiative’s products includes a community training program and a toolkit of resources for the community and public.
Click Here to complete the survey. Please note that the survey will be closed on February 28, 2020.
If you would like more information about the project, please contact Dr. Eman Hassan (ehassan@bc-cpc.ca)
We would greatly appreciate it if you could share this email widely with community organizations or groups in your network.
Feb 10, 2020
The BC Centre for Palliative Care partnered with Victoria Hospice and Canuck Place Children’s Hospice to host the first ever ECHO session for Palliative and Psychosocial professionals from across BC!
On February 7, thirty-one participants, including social workers, counsellors and spiritual health practitioners working with people affected by life-limiting illness “met” each other online to discuss their learning needs and expectations for the group.
The participants were from all over the province and work in oncology, long term care, palliative units, home care and renal. An exciting first step in building community and enhancing practice using technology. Participants will have monthly on-line sessions which will start with sharing how they have incorporated new knowledge into practice since the previous session. Sharing is followed by a short presentation about incorporating new evidence into practice with topics such as MAiD, complicated grief, and trauma-informed practice. Third, they will discuss an anonymized patients/family case study related to the topic of the day. The sessions will close with recommendations for management of the case.
Friday’s participants were excited to have the opportunity to connect with others in similar roles, to learn from each other and to stay current in evidence-based practice.
For information about the participation in future ECHO sessions, please contact Stephanie Stuerle sstuerle@bc-cpc.ca.
Feb 7, 2020
Released: Engaging Stakeholders to Improve Policy and Access to Quality Palliative Care in Canada
The BC Centre for Palliative is pleased to be a stakeholder in the national palliative care policy conversations between the public, researchers, and health system leaders. The newly released Palliative Care Matters study is positioned to inform the development, implementation, and evaluation of the 2018 Framework on Palliative Care in Canada (Health Canada, 2018). The palliative care action plans will continue to work towards improved access to high-quality palliative and end-of-life care for all Canadians.
Click here to view the policy.
Jan 15, 2020
BC Centre for Palliative Care is pleased to release The Framework for Palliative Care Education and Training in British Columbia. It is the result of a collaboration of health authorities, health care agencies, universities, BC Ministry of Health, palliative care and hospice organizations throughout B.C.
The framework’s purpose is to provide a foundational structure for palliative education planning on a provincial scale, by describing a vision, guiding principles, pillars and goals. It may serve as a shared resource for all parties with a responsibility for palliative care education in B.C., to help shape decision making and planning within the B.C. context.
Throughout the consultation process to develop this framework, it has been evident that stakeholders are committed to working together to enable quality palliative care in every sector and region of B.C. This framework is an initial step towards province-wide health care providers who are skilled and confident to provide palliative care.
Click here to view the framework.
Dec 20, 2019
Dec 16, 2019
The BC Centre for Palliative Care was pleased to host Dr. Tomoyuki Dobata and Dr. Satoko Hotta from Japan for two days of shared learning about how BC is adopting and adapting the concept of the global Compassionate Communities movement.
Dr. Eman Hassan, our executive director, invited several Compassionate Community Champions in BC to share their experiences with our Japanese guests. On December 12th, Camp Kerry, New West Hospice Society, and Compassionate Neighbourhood Health Partners Society met with Dr. Dobata and Dr. Hotta and each explained how they were able to create and mobilize compassionate, supportive networks for individuals and families affected by various illness and end-of-life issues. On December 13th, Melody Jobse, Community Engagement, accompanied the guests in a visit to Canuck Place Children’s Hospice, the provinces’ hospice palliative care provider for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. Later in the day, Dr. Dobata and Dr. Hotta where inspired to meet with L3 group which included young adults whose serious illnesses have not stopped them from living full, independent lives.
Nov 25, 2019
New Resources to Support the Legal Processes of Advance Care Planning in Canada.
The “Living Well, Planning Well” toolkits are two complementary resources about the legal processes and requirements of Advance Care Planning in Canada.
Public Toolkit
The “Living Well, Planning Well” public resource is designed to support public understanding and navigation of the legal processes of Advance Care Planning in Canada.
The toolkit was co- developed by Speak Up and BC Centre for Palliative Care. A national Advisory Committee of legal professionals, health care providers, and patient and caregiver representatives supported its development.
Funding for this resource was provided by the Canadian Bar Association’s Law for the Future Fund grant program.
English version
French version
Lawyer’s Toolkit
The “Living Well, Planning Well” legal toolkit is designed to help lawyers and their clients go through the process of ACP.
The toolkit was created by Speak Up and two legal firm partners: TorkinManes (Toronto, ON) and HarperGrey (Vancouver, BC).
Funding for this resource was provided by Health Canada as part of a $1.9 million funded project over three years to help people living in Canada prepare for their future health care needs.
English version
French version
Nov 19, 2019
Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association Releases An Updated National Framework for Advance Care Planning in Canada
The 2019 Pan-Canadian Framework for Advance Care Planning was developed by the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association with input from over 300 stakeholders from across Canada.
The BC Centre for Palliative Care participated in the process of creating and reviewing the Framework through the Centre’s membership in the National ACP Advisory Committee and Capacity Building Task Group.
The 2019 Pan-Canadian Framework sets a new strategy that will help people move from thinking that Advance Care Planning is good idea to actually having the important conversations about the future health-care plans.
The framework positions Advance Care Planning as a normal part of the life journey giving all people in Canada regular opportunities throughout their lives to express their wishes for their future care. The framework strives to reach people at different ages and stages of life and recognizes the critical role that culture plays in how people view health-care decisions.
The structure of the 2019 framework focuses more on broadening partnerships, and promoting further collaboration among different jurisdictions (local, provincial/territorial, national) and systems (health, law, social services, life planning) to support Advance Care Planning.
View and download the framework.
Nov 12, 2019
Healthy Aging Summit
The BC Centre for Palliative Care was a participate at the Healthy Aging Summit on November 7-8, 2019. Dr. Eman Hassan, executive director, and the team were pleased to explore, along with other provincial organizations, healthy aging initiatives in B.C.
Nov 8, 2019
Serious Illness Conversation Training in Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan Cancer Agency (SCA) hosted Train the Trainer for Serious Illness Care: More, Earlier, Better Conversations on November 6, 2019 in Regina Saskatchewan.
Bryan Jorgensen, Director of Supportive Care and Sandra Goodman-Chartier, Project Lead for Early Palliative Integrated Care (EPIC) were instrumental in bringing the vision into reality. “We took our first formal steps as an Agency towards enhancing our communication with patients, families and each other as interdisciplinary team members.”
Master Coaches of the BC Serious Illness Conversation Initiative, Dr. Gillian Fyles and Elizabeth Beddard-Huber, were invited by the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency to mentor the training of four Master Trainers in Saskatchewan: Dr. Michelle Ferguson, Radiation Oncologist, Jennifer Sanderson, RN, Dr. Osama Ahmed, Medical Oncologist and Lina Esmail, RN in the Serious Illness Care Program. A further 18 facilitators and 34 clinicians were trained to teach and use the Serious Illness Conversation Guide in clinical practice. SCA plans to lead future Clinician Workshops in both Saskatoon and Regina.
Congratulations to the Saskatchewan team for their ongoing commitment to providing person-centred care through Serious Illness Conversations.
Nov 5, 2019
Remembering Dr. Jennifer Kryworuchko
The team at BC Centre for Palliative Care is deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Jennifer Kryworuchko, Friday October 25, 2019. She will be sorely missed by all of us who had the privilege of getting to know her. Jennifer always demonstrated a deep dedication to furthering the knowledge of a palliative approach to care, especially in the context of shared decision-making between patients and health-care professions.
As a core team member, she travelled to Boston to learn from the developers about the Serious Illness Conversations program. Her guidance was influential in helping to implement and teach the Serious Illness Conversation Program Initiative in British Columbia.
As a Principal Investigator in our peer-facilitated Advance Care Planning research project, Jennifer was integral in the success of the project. Her guidance and leadership supported the development and evaluation of this public education model, which has been recognized nationally as a valuable innovation and spread to over 60 communities across British Columbia.
As an Associate Professor of the School of Nursing at UBC, Jennifer shared her knowledge with nursing students and led the work to modify the Clinician Reference Guide for use by nurses and allied health on how to have serious illness conversations in the process of care.
The legacy of her contributions will continue to shape education and nursing practice. Our thoughts are with her family at this time. – The BC Centre for Palliative Care Team
For more information on the work and legacy of Dr. Jennifer Kryworuchko, please visit the UBC in Memoriam Announcement.
Oct 23, 2019
Upcoming – National Bereavement Day
November 19, 2019, is the annual National Bereavement Day in Canada. On this day, the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA) invites all Canadians to think about those who have passed away from our lives and help advocate for support at local, provincial, and national levels for grieving Canadians.
“Grief impacts all aspects of our lives,” and CHPCA is encouraging Canadians to cope with their grief by supporting each other through living and grieving. This year’s theme is “Coping with grief, together through living and grieving” The 2019 digital campaign aims to encourage individuals and groups to learn about grief and bereavement, this year CHPCA highlights the importance of coping with grief and encourages all Canadians to support those living with grief and bereavement.
Click here to download this year’s resources and share them with your friends, family and loved ones who are experiencing grief.
Oct 1, 2019
Dr. Eman Hassan is Appointed Executive Director of BC Centre for Palliative Care
Marc Pelletier CEO of the Institute for Health System Transformation and Sustainability is very pleased to announce that Dr. Eman Hassan has been appointed executive director of BC Centre for Palliative Care (BCCPC), effective October 1st. Dr. Hassan has served with the Centre for the past five years, as a public health consultant, director of public health initiatives, and acting executive director.
See full news release here.
Sept 24, 2019
CHPCA Best Poster Presentation
At the 2019 Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Conference Kathleen Yue won best poster presentation for her poster titled “Choosing Educational Resources to Help Build Capacity for Palliative Care”. The poster showcases a tool developed by BC Centre for Palliative Care to help health-care professionals determine which B.C. educational resources best address palliative competencies. Kathleen Yue is the education and partnership lead for BC Centre for Palliative Care.
Sept 19, 2019
Dr. Doris Barwich – Balfour Mount Champion Award Recipient
Dr. Doris Barwich was awarded the Balfour Mount Champion Award presented at the 2019 Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Conference on September 19th. The award recognizes her dedicated leadership, commitment to excellence in knowledge, championing, advocating and advancing hospice palliative care and end-of-life care in Canada. Dr. Barwich was the inaugural executive director and currently serves as the medical director at BC Centre for Palliative Care.
All Rights Reserved By
BC Centre for Palliative Care
The BC Centre for Palliative Care acknowledges that the land on which we work is the unceded shared traditional territories of the Coast Salish People, including the territories of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
Thank you for using our resources and acknowledging our work. The BC Centre for Palliative Care license by Creative Commons license Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs applies to all content, intellectual property created by BCCPC. This means you may download works and share with other when all works are credited to BC Centre for Palliative Care. No changes, edits or alterations may be made to any content in any way. Commercial use is not permitted.