Paediatric palliative care
It's not something Kiwis want to think about, but we must. Palliative means the patient's treatment becomes focused on helping them live their lives with as much comfort, fulfilment and dignity as possible.
When a child is palliative, their needs and the needs of their whānau are different to palliative adults. Children who sadly pass away need specialised care that takes their physical, emotional, familial and psycho-social needs into account — care that’s equitably available to all children, wherever they are in New Zealand. Our country currently lacks a fully funded national paediatric palliative care service, which leaves many children with less-than-ideal end of life outcomes.
To address this, we recently wrote to Hon Simeon Brown, Minister Of Health, welcoming him to korero with us. We look forward to hearing from him.