Description
Lack of services and treatment options are leading to a situation in which children and youth with life-limiting or terminal illness, do not get the care and support they need towards the end of their lives. Many are not given the required pain relief and do not have access to palliative care. The main objective of the project is to increase the access to end of life care for children and youth, vulnerable to social and economic exclusion and in need of palliative care in Bacau, Neamt and Vaslui counties. The competences of 300 professionals in social services will be developed to provide palliative care services, through training courses, job shadowing and coaching. An information campaign will increase the information level regarding palliative care for 500 students, future professionals in social services. A lobby and advocacy campaign will be conducted for adopting a new standard methodology in assisting vulnerable children and youth, which need palliative care, in 12 institutions, social services providers.
Summary of project results
In Romania, there are very few available palliative care services available and even fewer specialized in the assistance of children and youth. In Vaslui and Neamt counties, there are no such services. The PP is the only provide of palliative care for children and youth. The lack of such services puts patients in an even more vulnerable position, not being able to cope with the pain associated with the disease. A cause of limited services is also the fact that organizations and specialists in social services do not have the necessary know-how, as long as palliative care does not consist exclusively of medical assistance. The project aimed to increase the access to palliative care of children and youth from Bacau, Vaslui and Neamt counties. A methodology for provision of palliative care has been developed and tested, in partnership with DGASPC Bacau, based on the St. Christopher Hospice model (UK), the first hospice in the world. A total number of 1315 specialists in social services, from public or private organizations, have benefitted, in various ways, from the expertize and the instruments developed in the project. Thus, 5 palliative care training programmes have been delivered, along with 12 online training sessions, job shadowing modules and a coaching programme. The methodology developed has been valorised also by disseminating it within a newly established network of institutions that committed to implement it in delivering their own palliative care services, as well as within 12 public information events. The project contributed to the development of competencies regarding palliative care of specialists from service providers, increased awareness of future professionals regarding the palliative care model and implementation of the newly developed model by various public and private social service providers in Romania.
Summary of bilateral results