Palliative care for older people - World Health Organization ...

3. Invest in research, development and educationas part of the overall strategy on palliative carefor older people.4. Plan palliative care for older people at the levelof local government and develop strategies thatpromote effective leadership and communityaction in planning and implementing care,consistent with the culture of the communityorganization and its norms, standards andorganizational structure: a single provider,separation between health and social careor separation of responsibilities at differentgovernment levels depending on the type ofhealth care system.Health professionals need to do thefollowing.1. Ensure they are adequately trained and up todate in both geriatrics and the palliative care ofolder people, including assessing and treatingpain and other symptoms, communication skillsand coordination of care.2. Measure the outcomes of their routine careregularly, including for older people.3. Ensure that older people with palliative care needsare regarded as individuals, that their right tomake decisions about their health and social careis respected and that they receive the unbiasedinformation they need without experiencingdiscrimination because of their age.4. Ensure that their organizations work incoordination and collaboration with otherstatutory, private or voluntary organizations thatmay provide help or services for older peopleneeding palliative care.5. Participate in research, education and auditingthat seek to improve palliative care.Those funding research should do thefollowing.© Hristina Petkova1. Invest in programmes that develop and robustlydetermine the effectiveness and costeffectivenessof ways to improve palliative carefor older people, including people with diseasesother than cancer. These programmes shouldbe sustained over a period of time so thatnew models of care and interventions can bedeveloped and evaluated.2. Promote collaboration in comparing bestpractices in palliative care in various countries.54