Funding for the BC Hospice Palliative Care Association announced
The BC Ministry of Health has provided the BC Hospice Palliative Care Association (BCHPCA) a grant of $140,000 to support the ongoing delivery of high quality palliative care by British Columbia hospice organizations.
“Ensuring that people nearing the end of their lives and their loved ones have access to quality hospice and palliative care services continues to be a priority for our government,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Health. “The funding provided to BCHPCA will help them to continue their work in bringing together individuals and organizations that deliver these services to people in our province and foster meaningful collaboration, education and research in the sector.”
The funding enables BCHPCA to significantly broaden its reach and better support its members and community. The association provides a wide range of services and programs, driven by education, research and stakeholder partnerships in hospice palliative care, grief and bereavement and community navigation to people in B.C. who are dying, their loved ones who are grieving, and caregivers.
Access to hospice palliative care continues to be a growing concern as the aging population requires more end-of-life care and services, along with support for family caregivers.
“By 2036, 240,000 of the provincial population will be over the age of 65, increasing demands on hospice palliative care,” said Kevin Harter, President of BCHPCA and CEO of Victoria Hospice Society.
A palliative approach to care is required to ensure all people in B.C. live well until the very end, dying the way they choose and easing the challenges on family, loved ones and the primary health care system. Hospice societies in B.C. are uniquely positioned to help deliver person-centered hospice palliative care services in a variety of settings and bereavement supports.
“B.C. hospices are expanding grief and bereavement services that are making a significant impact and allow for the implementation of new and effective supports. This important funding will enable us to connect with vulnerable populations, including structurally unhoused, BIPOC and 2SLGBTQIA+ and increase our reach to rural and remote communities,” says Pablita Thomas, Executive Director of BCHPCA.
Together with the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA), BCHPCA recently celebrated the essential services and leadership the hospice palliative care community provides during National Hospice Palliative Care Week from May 7 to 13, 2023. In the month of May, the hospice palliative care community also celebrates Hike for Hospice, which is a national event that hospice palliative care societies in B.C. participate in. Connect with your local hospice society to learn more about the important hospice and palliative care work being carried out in your community.
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About the BC Hospice Palliative Care Association – The BC Hospice Palliative Care Association is a not-for-profit, charitable, public membership organization, which has been representing individuals and organizations committed to promoting and delivering hospice palliative care to people in B.C. and the Yukon for over 37 years. Our members provide a broad range of hospice palliative care programs and services to people in need across the province of B.C. and the Yukon territories with serious illnesses, their loved ones who are grieving, and their caregivers. The services hospice societies deliver are accessible to all, regardless of the type of illness, age, sex, sexual orientation, race, culture, and religious beliefs. Go to www.bchpca.org or visit us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to learn more.
For more information, please contact:
British Columbia Hospice Palliative Care Association
Christie Carrington, Communications and Projects Coordinator
christie.carrington@bchpca.org
See PDF version of this media release.
