The mission of the Program in Global Palliative Care (PGPC) is to help prevent and relieve unnecessary suffering among the global poor by reducing the global disparity in access to palliative care and pain control.
Directed by Eric L. Krakauer, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicine and of Global Health & Social Medicine, the PGPC assists Ministries of Health, hospitals, healthcare training institutions, and other partners in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to integrate palliative care into comprehensive care of patients with serious chronic, complex, or life-threatening health problems in ways that are sustainable, strengthen healthcare systems, provide financial risk protection for patients and families, and contribute to universal health coverage.
Training and technical assistance in palliative care for low- and middle-income countries
The PGPC can provide all types of palliative care training and technical assistance required to create local or national palliative care programs in LMICs. These include assistance with:
- Measuring palliative care needs and the outcomes and costs of services
- Developing or refining palliative care policies and strategic plans
- Assuring accessibility of opioid analgesics and other essential palliative medicines
- Developing training curricula for students, practicing clinicians, and healthcare leaders
- Training healthcare workers at all levels of healthcare systems in pain relief and palliative care
- Implementing cost-effective palliative care training and services
Since it was founded in 2006, the PGPC has worked in Vietnam where Dr. Krakauer serves as a visiting professor at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Ho Chi Minh City.
The PGPC also has ongoing partnerships in Malawi, Rwanda, and Haiti, and has completed projects in Nepal, Bangladesh. Its work has resulted in numerous publications. It is supported entirely by donations.