The Catholic Weekly 7 March 2021

$2 Sadly, the rate of palliative care hos- pitalisations for children under 15 has increased by more than 10 per cent a year annually since 2011-12.” ACU researcher Dr Cris Abbu AUSTRALIA ONLY has half the number of palliative care doctors needed to provide good quality care for chron- ically and terminally ill pa- tients despite increasing demand, according to new re- search. The study by the PM Glynn Institute at the Australian Catholic University found that across the country there is less than one palliative specialist (0.9) per 100,000 people, de- spite the recommended rate of two per 100,000 people. At the same time, the need for palliative care is growing, at a rate faster for children then adults. In addition, despite public demand for home-based pal- liation, most terminally ill pa- tients requiring palliative care live their last days in hospital. The report was released just days prior to the final report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. Royal Commissioners Lynelle Briggs and Tony Pagone in- cluded greater investment in specialist palliative care ac- cess and quality in a dozen of its 148 recommendations. “Too few people receive ev- idence-based end-of-life and palliative care, and instead ex- perience unnecessary pain or indignity in their final days,” the Commissioners said. Pallative care access and provision requires “immedi- ate attention” alongside food and nutrition, dementia care, and the use of restrictive prac- tices in aged care facilities “besieged by neglect” across the nation, they added. The Royal Commission report also highlighted “an urgent need” to improve the availability of palliative care for younger people. Palliative care enhances the quality of life for people with chronic or life-limiting conditions, including those who are close to death. A KPMG report released in May last year revealed that more than $450 million could be saved through better fund- ing of palliative care services and a national strategy on end-of-life care. The ACU report author Dr Cris Abbu said more doctors and nurses needed to be en- couraged to specialise in “this important work”. The report recommends a recruitment program with student scholarships and gov- ernment subsidies to train an additional 225 specialist doc- tors. It also recommends de- veloping integrated models of palliative care service pro- vision to reduce the burden on hospitals, using commu- nity-based care to support people in their homes, in aged care, in boarding houses, and for the homeless. It said strengthening the knowledge and role of GPs in palliative care provision was important, and planning for end of life care as a standard part of clinical practice. The study found better spe- cialist services were needed for palliative care of terminal- ly ill children, who are often overlooked, as the number of hospitalisations is small com- pared to older cohorts. “Sadly, the rate of palliative care hospitalisations for chil- dren under 15 has increased by more than 10 per cent a year annually since 2011-12,” said Dr Abbu. “We need a dedicated pol- icy focus to ensure they have the best possible care.” The reports add support to calls on governments that are considering passing assisted suicide laws to first address serious flaws identified in health and aged care services. “People say voluntary-as- sisted dying is about giving patients a choice but if dying patients cannot access the palliative care services they need, they don’t really have a free choice,” said director of the PM Glynn Institute Dr Mi- chael Casey. “We need to do more to ensure that everyone who needs good quality palliative care can access it, wherever they are and whatever their circumstances, before consid- ering a momentous step like voluntary assisted dying.” Tasmania is considering legalising assisted suicide fol- lowing Victoria and Western Australia, while a push con- tinues in Queensland. Ben Smith, of leading ad- vocacy group Live & Die Well called for a halt to Tasmania’s End-of-Life Choices bill after government agencies iden- tified 139 “implementation issues” and an independent review recommended an ex- emption for faith-based hos- pitals and aged care. “The (government) agency advice … has shown that the bill is a plethora of inconsist- encies, ambiguities and ob- scurities,” said Mr Smith. Catholic Health Australia wants amendments made, including greater protections for the vulnerable. It is urging supporters to sign a petition asking the government to properly fund aged care at www.careabout- agedcare.org.au AGED CARE ROYAL COM- MISSION IDENTIFIES A NATIONAL CRISIS P9 ‘Palliative care is dying’ Howmuch does Australia care for our terminally ill? Reports uncover a shocking national neglect ¾ Marilyn Rodrigues NOT LONG after the Carmel- ite sisters arrived in the drought affected central west … so did themuch-needed rain. Both Catholics and non-Catholics alike have em- braced the arrival of the con- templative order to theDiocese of Wilcannia-Forbes and can only attribute the apparent “miracles” to some form of di- vine intervention. And it’s not just the so-called acts of God that have been wel- comed to the Diocese, but also vocations to the Order. Since their arrival two years ago, three women have entered the Carmelite Monastery of Je- sus, Mary and Joseph bringing their number to seven, and now need to extend their mod- est five-bedroom farmhouse to cater for young women want- ing to enter. CONTINUED ON PAGE 15 ¾ Debbie Cramsie The spirit prospers in the Outback 7, March, 2021 PLENARY TAKES A GIANT STEP P2 YOU NEED TO READ THIS BOOK P25 Carmelite Sisters walk through the parched countryside of the Diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes. The sisters symbolise how life in faith is flowering in Australia’s often-harsh interior. PHOTO: DIOCESE OF WILCANNIA-FORBES