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| Palliative Care Australia | |
|---|---|
| Name | Palliative Care Australia |
| Type | Non-profit |
| Founded | 1985 |
| Headquarters | Canberra, Australian Capital Territory |
| Area served | Australia |
| Mission | To advance quality palliative care for all Australians |
Palliative Care Australia is the national peak body representing palliative care services and practitioners across Australia. It works with stakeholders including Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania to promote standards aligned with international frameworks such as those from the World Health Organization, International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care and regional networks like the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network. The organisation engages with healthcare institutions including Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital and policy actors in the Australian Parliament and Department of Health and Aged Care.
Founded in 1985, the organisation evolved amid initiatives by hospice pioneers and charitable institutions such as St Christopher's Hospice, Marie Curie, Calvary Health Care and community groups in response to advocacy by clinicians associated with Professor Dame Cicely Saunders, Dame Janet Vaughan-era reforms and Australian advocates who had links to Royal College of Physicians networks. Early collaborations included state-based organisations like Palliative Care New South Wales and Palliative Care Victoria, and partnerships with tertiary centres such as University of Sydney, Monash University and University of Melbourne to establish clinical guidelines influenced by documents from National Health and Medical Research Council and international consensus processes like the Lancet Commission. Over subsequent decades it navigated health policy shifts under Australian leaders from the Hawke Government through the Morrison Government and worked alongside statutory bodies such as the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and the Medicare Benefits Schedule review to expand service models inspired by examples in United Kingdom, Canada, United States, New Zealand and Netherlands.
The organisation operates as a member-based peak body with a board structure modelled on governance practices from entities like Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission and draws governance expertise from individuals with affiliations to institutions such as Royal Australasian College of Physicians, Australian and New Zealand Society of Palliative Medicine, Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation and universities including University of Queensland and Griffith University. Its executive leadership liaises with clinical networks including Palliative Care Australia Standards-aligned services, state associations such as Palliative Care South Australia and external advisors from agencies like Health Workforce Australia and standards bodies exemplified by Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care.
Programs emphasise clinical support, service delivery models and community engagement, linking exemplar services such as Calvary Health Care Bethlehem, Anglicare programs and specialist units at Royal Melbourne Hospital and The Alfred Hospital. Initiatives include national frameworks for symptom management influenced by research from Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and models for rural access drawing on work by Royal Flying Doctor Service and Aboriginal health services including Congress of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Nurses and Midwives collaborations. The organisation develops resources used by multidisciplinary teams from Australian College of Nursing, allied health professionals from Speech Pathology Australia, Occupational Therapy Australia and volunteers organised through groups like Vinnies and Salvation Army (Australia).
Advocacy priorities address policy debates involving legislative reforms such as those in Victoria and Western Australia regarding end-of-life choices and engage with parliamentary inquiries of the Senate of Australia and committees like the Senate Community Affairs References Committee. It provides submissions to reviews of the National Palliative Care Strategy and liaises with regulators including Therapeutic Goods Administration where relevant to access to medicines such as opioids, coordinating with peak bodies like Cancer Council Australia, Rural Doctors Association of Australia and patient groups including Dying with Dignity NSW and Carers Australia.
Education programs are delivered via partnerships with universities and professional colleges including University of Sydney, University of Technology Sydney, Monash University, Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and Australian College of Nursing. Curriculum development aligns with competencies endorsed by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency and interprofessional learning involving entities such as St John Ambulance Australia, Australian Physiotherapy Association and pharmacy organisations like Pharmaceutical Society of Australia. Continuing professional development, online modules and workshops are modelled on training frameworks used by Hospice New Zealand and accredited through university partnerships and peak training providers like TAFE NSW.
The organisation supports and disseminates research in collaboration with academic partners such as University of Melbourne, University of Sydney, Curtin University, Deakin University and research institutes including Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute and Menzies School of Health Research. It publishes policy papers, clinical guides and position statements informed by systematic reviews in journals such as The Lancet, BMJ, Journal of Palliative Medicine and Australian outlets like Australian Health Review and collaborates on trials registered with bodies such as the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry.
Funding derives from federal initiatives administered through agencies like the Department of Health and Aged Care and grants from philanthropic organisations including The Myer Foundation, Ian Potter Foundation, Perpetual and partnerships with charities such as Cancer Council Australia and corporate supporters including healthcare providers like Calvary Health Care and private hospitals in the Ramsay Health Care network. Strategic alliances extend to international partners such as the World Health Organization and regional collaborators like the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network to leverage best practice and funding mechanisms.
Category:Health organisations based in Australia Category:Palliative care