Sector news

Palliative Care Australia has announced the appointment of Dr Chris Hatherly as the organisation’s new Chief Executive Officer. Dr Hatherly will commence with PCA on 8 July 2026. Simon Waring will continue as Interim CEO during this transition.

During June 2026, the HELP Program will transition away from the HELP App, while continuing to deliver and evolve the broader HELP model. From 1June 2026, the HELP App will not be available from app stores, and all HELP digital networks will cease from June 30. The App has been valuable for many, but digital tools aren’t for everyone. This feedback and increasing costs mean it’s no longer sustainable. Latrobe is still providing access to the HELP tools and resources including the HELP Guide, HELP Tips, HELP Comversation Starter, and the HELP Script and Checklist on their website.

The Australian Health Biobank (AHB) is Australia’s first national general population biobank. The CSIRO, supported by the Australian Department of Health, Disability and Aging is establishing Australia’s first national biobank to provide researchers with secure access to a nationally representative repository of high-quality biospecimens and data. The AHB will support medical advances by providing researchers with access to samples from across the Australian population – making health and medical research easier and quicker.

The refreshed digital health hub by Allied Health Professions Australia provides a practical guide for allied health professionals to connect, adopt, and use digital health tools that support safer, more coordinated care.

These new guidelines provide structured recommendations that complement more detailed drug-specific deprescribing guidance, disease-specific therapeutic guidelines and non-pharmacological management resources. These guidelines were developed by a team of 72 experts, including consumer representatives, and were further shaped by feedback from public consultation and independent reviewers. A summary of the guidelines was published in the MJA. The detailed guideline is available at https://deprescribing.com.

palliMEDS contains prescribing information for medicines most useful to manage common end-of-life symptoms in the last weeks of life. A new update version adds paediatric prescribing* information strengthening  the capacity of primary care prescribers to deliver timely and effective palliative care for all patients.