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The views and opinions expressed in our blog series are those of the authors and are not necessarily supported by CareSearch, Flinders University and/or the Australian Government Department of Health.
COVID-19 presents an unprecedented challenge for patients, carers, and health professionals, especially for those providing home-based palliative care to patients. Professor Liz Reymond Director at Brisbane South Palliative Care Collaborative and Deputy Director at Metro South Palliative Care Service discusses the new caring@home packages for carers to support them to help manage symptoms in home-based palliative care patients and limit the risk of community COVID-19 transmission.
COVID-19 has presented many challenges and trauma's, however, there have also been some positive developments. Associate Professor Odette Spruijt from Australasian Palliative Link International discusses the opportunities which have evolved during this pandemic, as well as shares positive experiences she has encountered at her workplace and also some on international collaborations.
Advance care planning (ACP) is one of the main topics that callers to the ELDAC Helpline call for assistance with. Caroline Litster, Research Officer from ELDAC, discusses the type of ACP inquiries received, and how the Helpline team assist callers with navigating the more complex concerns around ACP in aged care, such as those relating to residents who lack decision-making capacity.
Nurses make up the majority of the health care workforce and as such are at the frontline in caring for the sick and dying, never more so than in caring for people during COVID-19. Deb Rawlings, Senior Lecturer in Palliative Care at College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Flinders University, reflects on her 40 years of experience in nursing, Florence Nightingale's legacy, and resources to support nurses in providing care at the end of life.
COVID-19 presents an important opportunity to raise the urgency of palliative care in humanitarian emergencies. Rachel Coghlan, PhD candidate at the Centre for Humanitarian Leadership, shares her experience while visiting the Gaza Strip and highlights how persons living through humanitarian crises can teach us the importance of compassion and support for each other, especially to those suffering illness or dying.