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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.
CareSearch is celebrating its 10 year anniversary. For 10 years CareSearch has been assembling and disseminating evidence becoming the major online source for palliative care evidence in Australia. Jennifer Tieman, CareSearch Director, discusses CareSearch's role and contribution, as well as touches on what is planned over the next three years.
Most Australians have an expectation that their GP will be able to provide them with the care they need when they are unwell, or at least make sure that they are linked in with the right services. While most GPs feel they have a role to play in caring for patients at the end-of-life, many do not feel confident in doing so. Recognised barriers to providing palliative care include patient complexity, inadequate training, inadequate access to resources and poor communication from specialists or treating teams. Palliative care and advance care planning is, and should be, part of the normal scope of practice of all primary care providers. To support this ELDAC has developed the primary care toolkit with relevant information and resources.