EAPC-President: Everyone In Europe Should Be Able To Find Relief From Suffering At The End Of Life

Main Category: Palliative Care / Hospice Care
Article Date: 11 May 2009 - 2:00 PDT

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For four days, Vienna acted as the international center of palliative care, as experts from more than 80 countries, from May 7 to 10, met at the 11th Congress of the European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC) to discussed current knowledge and new trends in all areas of support and care of patients with life-threatening illnesses in the last phase of their lives.

Too many people in Europe are left alone with their suffering: human dignity should not depend on where a person lives

"Accompanying the critically ill in the last phase of their lives has been given greater recognition as an important social task in recent years, and adopted as a medical challenge. Palliative and hospice care has developed a wealth of resources in many European countries since the establishment of the first modern hospice in London in 1969", says Prof. Lukas Radbruch, from the RWTH University in Aachen, and president of the EAPC, discussing the current situation in Europe at a press conference at the Congress. In many European countries, palliative care has made great progress: Palliative care units, hospital counseling services and mobile teams provide symptom relief and psychological support for patients and their families. However developments in the various countries vary greatly. "This is apparent from the Atlas of Palliative Care, which was compiled by the EAPC," says Prof Radbruch. "Whereas some countries are introducing full coverage of palliative care services, in less developed countries there are just a few pioneers active and patients are left to manage alone with their hopes of finding relief from suffering at the end of life." This is a situation which cannot be allowed to continue, says the EAPC president. "The possibility to die with dignity should not depend on the country in which a person lives."

According to the EAPC Palliative Care Euro-Barometer, which clearly demonstrates current disparities, UK leads the country ranking with respect to palliative care resources, followed by Ireland and Sweden. Among the countries with particularly few resources are Portugal, Slovakia and Estonia.

Austerity measures must not be made at the expense of the weakest

One of the most important themes at the international level in this context is the safe-guarding of resources, says the EAPC president: "In many countries, including those that are well developed, we will certainly have to be vigilant that public financing of these sorts of services doesn't fall victim to cuts in public financing as a result of the economic crisis." This is especially important, because just on the basis of demographic developments the demand for services is rising dramatically, says Prof. Radbruch. "According to estimates by the European Commission, in 2030 the EU will have 34.7 million citizens aged over 80 - compared to 18.8 million today."

White Paper to support development of adequate care

The EAPC has initiated a White Paper on Standards and Norms, setting up a list of definitions and statements with broad support and consensus all over Europe. "This White Paper will provide a broad fundament for future discussions on the development of palliative structures, so that every patient who needs it should be able to access adequate care in the future," Prof. Radbruch states.

Cultural differences influence attitudes to palliative care

In this context, diversity has to be considered. Differences in the provision of palliative care are not only related to the economic framework in a given country, but also to different attitudes or religious approaches, according to Prof. Radbruch: "European research projects have shown repeatedly that the cultural background influences central issues such as shared decision-making, sedation at the end of life or the wish for hastened death."

The 12th Congress of the European Association for Palliative Care will take place in Lisbon - 19-21 May 2011.

Atlas of Palliative Care

European Association for Palliative Care

Source:
Dr. Birgit Kofler
B&K Medien- und Kommunikationsberatung GmbH