Nurse Educator, Palestine- Middle East- Augusta Victoria Hospital-Jerusalem

Abstract

Since Palliative care is a new approach in Palestine, the first Pediatric Palliative Care program in the Palestinian Territories and a regional PPC network established this new approach to serve our patients. In 2014 (PPC) assessments, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) identified pediatric palliative care (PPC) as a need within the Palestinian health system. At that time there were no PPC services available in the Palestinian Territories. Notably, the field of palliative care generally, and pediatric palliative care specifically, irelatively new and underdeveloped. While there were PPC services available in the region, including in Israel and in Jordan, there remained a strong need for the development of the field across all locations. Palestinian children facing life-threatening illnesses face a number of challenges accessing care. The referral process between hospitals in the Palestinian Territories and in Israel requires a number of times intensive approvals and a permit to cross into Israel. When a child receives approval to cross, oftentimes their parents do not receive approval to accompany them. Thus, many Palestinian children receive treatment in East Jerusalem Palestinian or Israeli hospitals accompanied by a grandparent, a neighbor, or in extreme cases, a stranger. Over the last three year Mohammed AlQaddi, the nurse educator at Augusta Victoria hospital, coordinate and participate in the pediatric palliative care project, he is one of the PPC core team, and he participated and engaged in the workshops and training sessions for PPC.