Chennai: Health hepartment initiated home based palliative care units in 10 districts under National Health Mission recently, but staff and medical field workers lack training for the same. After DC reported on the need of a palliative care policy in the state, officials assured of deploying trained staff at the palliative care units. However, medical workers remain unaware of the procedure to provide palliative care even after the programme has kicked off.
Though the programme emphasises on community-based palliative care, clinical palliative care does not seem to ensure counselling and training of kin of the patient. For a community based palliative care unit, the family will also require training and awareness.
“Palliative training should be a part of the usual training of doctors and nurses as it is necessary for a wide range of diseases such as cancer, kidney failure, chronic liver disease, respiratory diseases, respiratory diseases, AIDS. Home -based primary health care system using local manpower, adequate funds and resources is necessary for implementation of palliative care,” said. Dr P. Ali, senior official at Chennai Pain and Palliative care.
When contacted the officials of the programme, they said that currently nurses are being identified for training. “Under the initiative, a staff nurse trained in palliative care will be visiting the patient in each of the 130 blocks of the 10 districts. Nurses and doctors at government hospitals as well as palliative care units will be trained to provide palliative care. They can later instruct the kin of the patient on palliative care to the patient,” an official said.
