News

April 3-30, 2024

Throughout the month of April, the BC Hospice Palliative Care Association (BCHPCA) will be leading the charge in honouring B.C. and Yukon Hospice Societies. 2024 marks the fourth annual Wildflower Bloom Campaign to raise funds for hospice societies while also raising awareness of the many services they offer. 

Since hospice services are as diverse as wildflowers, the BCHPCA and participating hospice societies will be selling wildflower seeds to bloom in appreciation of hospice societies across B.C and Yukon plus lapel pins will also be available for purchase to show your support for local hospices. The sale of the Wildflower Bloom lapel pins will be launched in April and will continue throughout the year.

Support for the Wildflower Bloom Campaign will mean more people in our communities will be aware of the diversity of hospice services available to them and their loved ones, to ease the pains and challenges of their serious illness, end of life, or grief journeys. The fundraising efforts will also help hospice societies continue to deliver quality services to meet the needs of communities throughout the province and territory. 

To learn more about hospice societies and to find out how you can support them through the Wildflower Bloom Campaign, please visit https://bchpca.org/wildflowers/.

News release

February 12, 2024 | Vancouver, British Columbia | Health Canada

Every senior in Canada deserves to age in dignity, safety, and comfort, regardless of where they live. That is why the Government of Canada is investing close to $200 billion over 10 years, which includes $5.4 billion for tailored bilateral agreements with provinces and territories on Aging with Dignity.

Today, the Honourable Mark Holland, Canada’s Minister of Health and the Honourable Adrian Dix, Minister of Health of British Columbia announced a bilateral agreement to invest $733 million over the next five years to help British Columbians age with dignity, closer to home, through improved access to home and community care and long-term care (LTC). This funding builds on the $1.2 billion bilateral agreement that was announced with the province in October of 2023.

Federal funding will support British Columbia’s five-year action plan to improve health care for seniors.

Read the full news release

Big News! BC Centre for Palliative Care & BC Hospice Palliative Care Association announce a consensus-based definition for the services provided by hospice societies in BC.

For further information please visit Hospice Definitions Project.

Upcoming Event Announcement:

HCABC Secretariat and BC Hospice Palliative Care Association ED, Pablita Thomas will be a Panelist at the upcoming event, Economic Club of Canada; Hospice and Palliative Care in Canada on January 24, 2024, held at the Sheraton Center Toronto Hotel.

For further information please visit: https://economicclub.ca/.

On October 6, 2023, the Hospice Care Alliance of British Columbia (HCABC) held its second Roundtable meeting at the Vancouver Marriott Airport Hotel. The event, facilitated by Pabilta Thomas, Executive Director of BCHPCA and Secretariat of the Alliance, was attended by key stakeholders and new partners in hospice care from across British Columbia. This report aims to provide a factual summary of the discussions and outcomes of this full-day meeting.

The agenda of the meeting included participant introductions, a presentation on the Alliance’s recent projects, and an in-depth discussion on the Terms of Reference, Vision, Mandate, and collective goals of the Alliance. The discussions focused on three of the ten steps from the “Path Forward” report: advocating for a provincial policy and strategy for hospice care, exploring partnership opportunities with underserved communities, and raising public awareness of hospice palliative care.

The report details the discussions held, the feedback received, and the decisions made during the meeting. It serves as a record of the event and provides information on the future priorities and planned contributions of the participants in relation to the Alliance’s activities.

Download report

Health Canada has published a progress report on its “Framework on Palliative Care in Canada” detailing the progress in palliative care since the adoption of the 2017 framework. This framework, mandated by the Government of Canada, focuses on improving palliative care accessibility nationwide. The report, based on data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information, indicates an increase in palliative care usage – from 52% in 2016-2017 to 58% in 2021-2022. It also notes a rise in the number of Canadians receiving palliative care at home.

The report further highlights the expansion of hospice facilities, with an increase in the number of residential hospice beds across the country. This expansion is part of a broader effort by provinces and territories to enhance palliative care services, as exemplified by new hospice openings in Yukon and Saskatchewan. The full report, offering a detailed overview of the state of palliative care in Canada, is available for download on the Health Canada website.

Learn more and download report 

The Action Plan:

A Product of Insights from 33 Experts, 32 Organizations, and Two Public Partners at the 2022 Provincial Bereavement Roundtable.

The groundbreaking report maps how British Columbians experience grief, and where they turn for support, and presents actionable recommendations to enhance the diverse forms of grief and bereavement support across the province.

Whether you’re an organization, professional, or someone who has experienced bereavement, this Action Plan has valuable insights and actionable recommendations.

Released By BC Centre For Palliative Care- November 2023

Learn more and view report 

Dementia Care for Clients and Families – A Palliative Approach
Winter Lunch & Learn Webinar Series

December 4, 5, 7, 8th, 2023
12:00 – 1:00 PDT

Each year, BCHPCA organizes two Lunch and Learn Series, providing a diverse range of educational sessions for both its members and the general public.

Given the themes and topics covered, this webinar series can benefit not just the hospice palliative care community but also individuals working in charitable, non-profit, public, and private sector organizations, including staff, volunteers, and leaders. It offers a practical opportunity to develop transferable skills that can support their work and community involvement.

Register

Many people in Canada experience challenges in accessing palliative care when and where they need it early enough in their illness trajectory to get the support they need. These challenges have been further exacerbated by the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on policy priorities, programs and services related to hospice palliative care in Canada. As such, the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) made it a priority to understand the state of palliative care across the country including progress made, enablers, barriers and gaps in care.

To do so, CCS surveyed all provinces and territories, 4 departments of the federal government and 13 community organizations on the state of palliative care. Quebec and Manitoba are the only two provinces that did not take part in the survey. The survey aimed to provide an update on the findings published in 2017 by the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association as part of The Way Forward Initiative.

The report details the state of palliative care in each surveyed jurisdiction. The report also includes the number of hospice beds in each province and territory. Based on the findings, CCS has provided a response discussing the ways governments can address the existing gaps and barriers identified in the report.

Released By Cancer Society of Canada – October 2023

View report

 

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.