This section will keep you up to date with news and events in the palliative care community. Please note that links below were current at time of posting, however links may become obsolete as websites update content.
Advance Care Directives on the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR)
Ten million dollars will be invested to enable Advance Care Directives to be stored on the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR) – making it easier to tell family and freinds how you wish to be cared for as you get close to the end of your life.
Respecting Patient Choices
The Australian Government has provided an additional $800,000 over two years for the evidence-based Respecting Patient Choices advance care planning project. This is aimed at developing nationally consistent advance care planning practice guidelines, expanding advance care planning in general practice and contributing to the development of advance care directives for PCEHRs.
National Palliative Care Week 2013
The theme for National Palliative Care Week 2013 is Palliative Care... everyone's business. Find out about resources, events and the My Tribute website at the PCA website.
Better Access to Palliative Care in Tasmania Program
The Department of Health and Ageing is seeking applications from interested non-government and private providers to deliver packages of patient-centred palliative care in the community setting in Tasmania.
Australian hospital statistics 2011-12
This report shows that the number of hospital admissions for people aged 85 and over rose by 9% each year between 2007-08 and 2011-12. This compares with an average increase of 4% per year overall for hospital admissions over this period.
ACP Grant Funding Project
The Department is seeking applications for a grant to deliver a new palliative care/advance care planning project. As part of the Living Longer Living Better aged care reform package¸ the Department of Health and Ageing is seeking applications from a wide range of non-government and government organisations other than the Commonwealth for a grant to deliver innovative specialist palliative care and advance care planning advisory services for aged care providers and GPs caring for recipients of aged care services. Applications close at 2pm Australian Eastern Standard Time on Monday 3 June 2013
Tasmania COMPAC training grant
Applications for a grant to deliver COMPAC training in Tasmania are being sought by the Department of Health and Ageing. Applications close at 2.00pm Australian Eastern Standard Time on 16 May 2013
Vocational Graduate Certificate in Bereavement Counselling and Intervention
The Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement is currently accepting applications for the Mid-2013 intake.The due date for applications for the 2013 Mid-Year Intake is Friday the 31st of May, 2013.
Strategic Review of Health and Medical Research
The final report of the McKeown Review looking at health and medical research in Australia has been released.
National Centre for Cognitive Decline
Australia’s first Partnership Centre will address the complex problems faced by older people with cognitive decline, including dementia. The new Centre will bring together consumers, researchers and aged care providers in a partnership to ensure research results in real changes in practice.
EAPC Early Researcher
Director of Palliative Care at HammondCare’s Braeside Hospital in south-west Sydney, Associate Professor Meera Agar, has been awarded the European Association for Palliative Care’s (EAPC) Early Researcher Award. The award recognises the work of emerging scientists and clinicians in the field of palliative care who have recently made an outstanding contribution to research and/or academic teaching.
Causes of death, Australia, 2011
In 2011, the leading underlying cause of death for all Australians was Ischaemic heart disease, ollowed by cerebrovascular diseases, and dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Ranking causes of death is a useful method of describing patterns of mortality in a population. It allows comparison over time and between populations.
Palliative Care Network Virtual Conference - Call for Abstracts
Call for Abstracts OPEN! Make the world your audience. The International Palliative Care Network Conference - 2013 is an online conference hosted on the Palliative Care Network Community Site. Participation and access to the virtual conference is free! Palliative Care professionals from all disciplines and regions of the world are encouraged to participate in presenting lectures and posters. Awards for select categories. For more details, visit www.palliativecarenetwork.com.
More scholarships for Aged Care Workers
Minister for Ageing, the Hon. Mark Butler MP, has announced 72 new aged care nursing scholarships to provide financial support for people to study nursing at university, or to undertake continuing professional development. The scholarships are for postgraduate, undergraduate and nurse practitioner studies. The scholarships are open now and close on 26 April 2013. More information can be obtained from the Australian College of Nursing on 1800 116 696 or at www.acn.edu.au.
The Palliative Care Clinical Studies Collaborative (PaCCSC) have a new look website. It incorporates an open to the public area as well as a closed (login only) area, where members of the Collaborative can access information and documents relevant to the clinical trials currently being undertaken. Have a look at the redesigned site at www.caresearch.com.au/paccsc.
New guidance for interdisciplinary team functioning
The National End of Life Care Programme has published a guide on 'Optimising the role and value of the interdisciplinary team – providing person-centred end of life care'.
Aged care nursing scholarships
New government scholarships have been announced with financial support on offer for nurses to attend conferences, courses, workshops and re-entry training.
RACGP Grants
The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has announced the opening of the 2013 research grants and award round. The grants and awards are given as an investment to the RACGP vision – ‘Healthy Profession, Healthy Australia’ – and are intended to recognise and advance the vital contribution of general practice to the health of all Australians.
International Palliative Care Directories
The International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care (IAHPC) has built two global directories which provide information on Educational Programs and Palliative Care Providers/Organizations around the world.
QuickStats Country of Birth
This statistical service provided by the Australian Bureau of Statistics can help palliative care services to understand the background of their local population.
Chief Allied Health Officer
The Commonwealth will appoint a Chief Allied Health Officer to support the work of thousands of allied health professionals.
National Efficient Price 2013 -14
The Independent Hospitals Pricing Authority (IHPA) has announced the National Efficient Price and the National Efficient Cost for 2013-14. The national efficient price reflects the costs of delivering the many different services provided by hospitals across Australia. The IHPA has included services that can prevent the need for hospitalisation, such as community palliative care services.
Dementia care in hospitals: costs and strategies
This report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare estimates the cost of caring for people with dementia in New South Wales hospitals, and presents strategies and practices being implemented in Australia and internationally that might improve outcomes for people with dementia and reduce care costs.
2012 National Aged Care Workforce Census and Survey Report
This report provides detailed information about the workforce that delivers aged care to older Australians in both residential and community care.
Dementia Research Grants 2013
Alzheimer's Australia Dementia Research Foundation is the research arm of Alzheimer's Australia. Round 1 of their Program is now open and closes on 5 April 2013.
Standards Reviewers Needed
Palliative Care Australia (PCA) is seeking volunteers to join a Steering Committee to guide revision of the Standards for Providing Quality Palliative Care for all Australians (the Standards).
Applications for the Translating Research Into Practice (TRIP) Fellowships scheme are now open and will close at 5:00pm (AEDT) on Wednesday 1 May 2013.
Australian Statistics on Medicines 2010
This publication provides an extensive and extremely valuable set of statistics on the use of prescription medicines in Australia up to and including the year 2010. Data were obtained from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, the Repatriation Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and an ongoing survey of a representative sample of community pharmacies.
NHMRC 2013 Ethics Award
The NHMRC Ethics Award recognises outstanding Australians for their contributions to high ethical standards in health and medical research or in health. Nominations for the NHMRC 2013 Ethics Award close 5 pm AESDT Friday 22 March 2013.
Diabetes and Palliative Care
Two consumer resources can help people with diabetes, their families and carers manage the condition whilst receiving palliative care.
New online consumer cancer resources
Two new online multimedia resources will help increase the involvement of people affected by cancer in cancer control efforts.The two new resources are:
- Consumer Learning website enhancing consumer knowledge and confidence to participate in cancer research and clinical trials
- Consumer Involvement Toolkit supporting CEOs, managers, health professionals, researchers and policy makers to effectively involve consumers in their organisation’s work.
Palliative care pioneer is Australian Senior of the Year
Emeritus Professor Ian Maddocks, who was appointed the first Chair of Palliative Care at Flinders 25 years ago, has been named The Australian Senior of the Year for 2013.
Project Grants for Funding Commencing in 2014
Applications for the NHMRC 2013 Project Grant scheme for funding commencing in 2014 are now open and will close at 5pm AEDT on Tuesday 19 March 2013.
Discovery Projects for Funding Commencing in 2014
Information and application materials on ARC Discovery Projects are now available. The closing date for submission of proposals is 5:00pm (AEDT) Wednesday 6 March 2013.
NHMRC Strategic Plan 2013-2015
The NHMRC"s new strategy highlights research translation, enhanced collaboration and partnerships, and streamlined processes as directions to improve the research effort in Australia
Home Care across Europe
The EURHOMAP report from World health Organization (Europe) highlights the complexity and diversity of considerations and approaches to home care provision across Europe.
Availability of morphine sulfate injection products: Information for health professionals
The current Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) listed brand of morphine sulfate 10mg/mL injection is experiencing a supply shortage.In recognition of the critical need for this drug, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) has recommended out of session the listing in the general and dental schedules of an alternate brand of morphine sulfate 10 mg/mL injection (Wockhardt). The Wockhardt brand, as per the Therapeutic Goods Administration’s advice, must only be administered by the intravenous, intramuscular and subcutaneous routes, and not administered intrathecally or epidurally.
News items from previous years can be found at:
Last updated 16 May 2013