palliative care

Canada needs national palliative care plan, CMA urges

Posted on Tue, Jun 10, 2014 - 12:00am

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The Canadian Medical Association is calling for the creation of a national palliative-care strategy to ensure people across the country have access to a high-quality, dignified end-of-life experience.

The CMA is also warning that strong safeguards must be put in place if physician-assisted dying is legalized in Canada. Last week, Quebec became the first province to allow physician-assisted death

Carly Weeks Reports

Death with dignity isn’t about euthanasia, says palliative care expert

Posted on Fri, May 2, 2014 - 12:00am

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Less than a third of the 250,000 Canadians who die each year have access to good palliative care, says Dr. Harvey Chochinov, a Winnipeg-based researcher on end-of-life treatment.

“There have been several special Senate reports on death and dying in Canada and the best estimates we have are that somewhere between 15 and 30 per cent of Canadians near the end of life will have access to quality, comprehensive palliative care, which is a rather shocking disclosure,” Chochinov said in a telephone interview Friday.

BC invests millions in hospices, creates action plan for end-of-life care

Posted on Tue, Apr 2, 2013 - 5:55pm

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hospice, end-of-life, dying, palliative care

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BC's minister of health today committed millions of dollars to four hospices in the Lower Mainland, and announced an action plan for the future of end-of-life care in the province. “[When someone is dying] it can be a time where there is grief and sorrow, but it can also be a time of joy and celebration of that person's life, so I think for me, the important thing about the announcements we're making is it's not about dying, it's about living,” said Health Minister Margaret MacDiarmid today at a press conference inside the Vancouver Hospice Society hospice home in Shaughnessy, a new hospice that will now open its beds to patients due to the funding boost.