The WHO Regional Office in Europe and Paracelsus Medical University in Salzburg have agreed to strengthen education and training in palliative care throughout the region. During the first term as WHO Collaborating Centre (2016-2020), semi-structured field interviews with national leaders in palliative care in Central Asia, Eastern Europe and South Eastern Europe were conducted between April and September 2018 to explore the structures of postgraduate palliative care education at country level and the need…

The integration of palliative medicine into the curricula of medical universities is an important step towards strengthening palliative care. The aim of the PALLIAUSTRIA project is to record the status of university level education of palliative medicine at Austrian medical faculties. Literature-based results are now published.

The perceived self-efficacy and preparedness of newly qualified physicians in practising palliative care were reported to be higher in areas of family involvement, and pain and symptom management than in areas of breaking bad news, prognosis, and diagnosing dying. Major influences on the young physicians’ perceived self-efficacy and preparedness in practising palliative care were socio-economic circumstances of a resource-limited setting and cultural-religious considerations. In addition, the perceived…

Power represents an essential distinction between cultural competence and cultural safety. Healthcare providers should reflect on interpersonal power differences and acknowledge the power differences between nurses and patients.

Teachers play a crucial role in PC education. Teachers are expected to organise learning, know the subject area and state of the art, be willing to learn, lead by example, and embody and practise the principles of palliative care. Equipping teachers with evidence-based curricula, clearly defined teaching objectives, method cases and performance assessment strategies should facilitate palliative care education in medical schools.

Read our newest publication reporting on Israeli medical faculty’s perceptions of the current state of the art in palliative care in Israel. The results reflect on particular importance of nurses with specialist palliative care training.

Along with the agreed Targets of References (TOR 3), in our WHO CC at the Paracelsus Medical University we are to assist WHO in the dissemination of evidence and information regarding digital innovations in integrated palliative care.

Undergraduate education is a central measure of Palliative Care status and should be used as such worldwide.