PRESENTATION

The Annual Conference of the International Collaborative for Best Care for The Dying Person / EAPC Task Force – Care for the Dying will take place in Porto on the 13th, 14th and 15th of November 2024. 

This event is organized by International Collaborative for Best Care for The Dying Person and Santa Maria Health School, Porto – Portugal, and will have as its motto: Communication and Integration (https://www.bestcareforthedying.org).

The International Collaborative for Best Care for the Dying Person integrates an international network of researchers, academics and physicians who develop training and research in the field of end-of-life care, promoting the dissemination of the best practices based on best evidence.

FEES AND PRICES

Collaborative Members

13-14 Nov – 175€
14 Nov (In Presence and lunch included) – 150€
14 Nov (Online) – 100€
Workshops (Limited Places) – 100€

Non-Collaborative Members

13-14 Nov – 225€
14 Nov (In Presence and lunch included) – 200€
14 Nov (Online) – 150€
Workshops (Limited Places) – 150€


PROGRAM

Digital Flyer

You can download the Digital Flyer here with all the information about the ICBCDP Annual Conference 2024.

Collaborative Symposium | 13th Nov

The International Collaborative for Care for the Dying Person

9h00 – Welcome and introduction to the “The International Collaborative for Best Care for The Dying Person”
John EllershawLiverpool University , UK

9h25 – Key achievements: highlights from 2024
Carl Johan Fürst, Lund University, Sweden

9h40 – Innovations in 2024: updates from Reference Centres

  • Norway: Revising the Care Plan – cascading changes sustainably
    Grethe Skorpen, Iversen RN, Haukeland University Hospital, Norway
  • Argentina: Spreading the Care Plan within general hospitals is challenging beyond the Palliative Care team’s responsibilities
    Vilma Tripodoro, Pallium Latinoamerica, Argentina
  • Sweden: Developing a course for leaders responsible for implementing a Care Plan
    Anette Duarte RN, Lund University , Sweden
  • Discussion

10h30 – Coffee break

11h00 – Workshops

  • Introduction
    Carl Johan Fürst, Lund University , Sweden
  • Workshop 1
    • What is the 10/40 Model for Best Care for the Dying Person? 
      Susie Wilkinson, Liverpool University, UK
    • Training and education in the Serious Illness Care Programme
      Stephen Mason, Liverpool University, UK
    • EAPC White Paper on Care for the Dying
      John Ellershaw, Liverpool University, UK
    • Revising the Care Plan – cascading changes sustainably
      Grethe Skorpen, Iversen RN, Haukeland University Hospital, Norway
    • Spreading the Care Plan within General Hospitals
      Vilma Tripodoro, Pallium Latinoamerica, Argentina
    • Developing a course for leaders responsible for implementing a Care Plan
      Anette Duarte RN, Lund University, Sweden
  • Workshop 2
    • Groups rotate
  • Feedback and discussion

12h30 – Lunch

13h30 – International Research in the Collaborative

  • Introduction 
    Agnes van der Heide, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Netherlands
  • Pitches on international research
    • Research on Core Outcome Sets and benchmarking
      Carl Johan Fürst, Lund University, Sweden
    • Research on serious illness communication
      Anna Sondagren, Linnaeus University, Sweden
    • Research on volunteering in end of life care
      John Ellershaw, Liverpool University, UK
    • Research on end-of-life decisions
      Agnes van der Heide, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Netherlands
    • Research on the 10/40 Model for Best Care for the Dying Person
      Stephen Mason, Liverpool University, UK
  • Round table discussion 1
  • Round table discussion 2
  • Summary and feedback
  • Concluding remarks and future steps

15h30 – Coffee Break

15h30 – The International Collaborative Annual General Meeting

  • Welcome and Annual Report OverviewJohn Ellershaw, Liverpool University, UK
  • Membership Update
    Susie Wilkinson, Liverpool University, UK
  • Financial Report
    Mark Boughey, Melbourne University, Australia
  • Summer School, Málaga 2025
    Marisa Martin Rosello, Fundación Cudeca, Spain
  • 10th Annual Conference, Liverpool 2025
    John Ellershaw, Liverpool University, UK

Research Conference | 14th Nov

Communication and Integration – improving care for the dying people and their families 

8h45 – Registrations and coffee

9h00 – Welcome and Introduction to “The International Collaborative for Best Care for The Dying Person”
Rui Carneiro / John Ellershaw

9h15 – Communication – Serious illness conversation

  • Serious Illness Conversation: what it is? 
    Carl Johan Fürst, Universidade de Lund, Suécia
  • Serious Illness Conversation: how to adjust to your reality? And in Portugal? 
    Bárbara Antunes
  • Oral Presentation of selected abstracts
  • Q&A

10h45 – Coffee and Poster viewing

11h00 – Suffering: is it a treatable trait?

  • Lessons from iLIVE : Live well; “Die well cohort” study
    Agnes van der Heide, Erasmus MC, Holanda
  • Investigating Suffering: what science has to do with it? 
    Harvey Chochinov, Universidade de Manitoba, Canadá
  • Q&A

12h30 – Lunch and Poster viewing

13h30 – Hot Topic: Dying from cancer and non-cancer disease: is it different?

  • Highly specific signs of imminent death
    Catarina Simões, Escola Superior de Saúde de Santa Maria, Portugal
  • Can we actually diagnose dying? 
    Séamus Coyle, Universidade de Liverpool, Reino Unido
  • Oral Presentation of selected abstracts
  • Q&A

14h00 – Integration: can end of life care be mainstream?

  • Public Engament in EoL: views from iLIVE 
    Marisa Martín-Roselló, Cudeca Hospice, Espanha
  • Integration of technology in the relief of suffering 
    José Luís Pereira, Universidade de Navarra, Espanha
  • Quality of care of the dying in modern Internal Medicine wards in Portugal
    Rui Carneiro, Hospital da Luz-Arrábida, Portugal
  • Oral Presentation of selected abstracts
  • Q&A

15h30 – Tea and Poster Viewing

16h00 – Hot Topic: Medication issues in last days of life

  • Pharmacologic approach of care in last days: from evidence to consensus 
    Patrícia Santos, Equipa de Apoio a Cuidados Comunitários Paliativos de Almada – Seixal, Portugal
  • Pharmacologic approach of care in last days: focusing in the patient
    Eric Geijteman, Erasmus MC, Holanda
  • Oral Presentation of selected abstracts
  • Q&A

16h30 – The Collaborative: looking in to the future
Prof. John Ellershaw

  • Reflection of the day 
  • Prizes
  • End of the day

Workshops | 15th Nov

In communication:

  • Communication about Serious Illness 
    Carl Johan Fürst

Workshop: Serious illness communication 
Time: 2 hours
Number of participants: max 20 
Participant background: clinicians with different training and background and with experience of communication with seriously ill patients and families. 
Workshop leader: Carl Johan Fürst, MD, PhD, Senior professor of palliative medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden

In the workshop we will discuss different types of crucial and sometimes challenging communications. The workshop will have a focus on the transition from a disease situation with hope for cure to a perspective of limited prognosis and the approaching death. We will explore the ability of the clinician to express compassion and stay in relation and dialogue with the patient. Useful communication strategies will be presented and there will plenty of room for interaction and demonstration of serious illness conversations.

In integration:

  • IIntegration and fostering Hope in the care of serious ill: tools and strategies for everyday clinical work 
    Ana Querido
  • Investigation in end of life: methodological and ethical challenges and pitfalls 
    Bárbara Antunes

Workshops | 15th Nov

In communication:

  • Communication about Serious Illness 
    Carl Johan Fürst

Time: 14H00 – 16H00
Number of participants: max 20 
Participant background: Clinicians with different training and background and with experience of communication with seriously ill patients and families. 
Workshop leader: Carl Johan Fürst, MD, PhD, Senior professor of palliative medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden

In the workshop we will discuss different types of crucial and sometimes challenging communications. The workshop will have a focus on the transition from a disease situation with hope for cure to a perspective of limited prognosis and the approaching death. We will explore the ability of the clinician to express compassion and stay in relation and dialogue with the patient. Useful communication strategies will be presented and there will plenty of room for interaction and demonstration of serious illness conversations.

Workshops | 15th Nov

In integration:

  • IIntegration and fostering Hope in the care of serious ill: tools and strategies for everyday clinical work 
    Ana Querido

Time: 9H00 – 11H00
Number of participants: max 30 
Participant background: Health Professionals
Workshop leader: Ana Querido, Portugal

Join us for an enlightening and transformative workshop specially designed for palliative care professionals. This workshop will equip you with the essential skills and strategies to seamlessly integrate hope into your daily practice, ensuring your patients receive the most compassionate and holistic care possible. Through a combination of theoretical approaches, interactive discussions, and practical exercises, you’ll gain helpful insights into the experiential, psychological, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of hope, and learn how to cultivate a hopeful environment for both patients and their families.

  • Investigation in end of life: methodological and ethical challenges and pitfalls
    Bárbara Antunes

Time: 11H00 – 13H00
Number of participants: max 30 
Participant background: Health Professionals
Workshop leader: Bárbara Antunes, Portugal

In this workshop we will consider ethical and methodological challenges when conducting research at the end of life. We will look at the main declarations which secure ethics in human research and discuss their vital importance and current updates. We will look at the Gatekeeping phenomenon, which continues to exist, as healthcare providers are often protective and will limit researchers’ access to patients. With good intentions, but often disrespecting patients’ autonomy, we will discuss strategies to minimise this, such as involving stakeholders in all parts of the research project, which also helps to maximize a project’s implementation and sustainability after the end of the research.  We will discuss specificities of recruitment of participants and response rates in this vulnerable population. We will reflect on the importance of engaging in research about end-of-life care and why it requires flexibility, sensitivity and adjustment to the organizational and legislative-juridical contexts. We will discuss how end-of-life research can be emotionally challenging for researchers and clinicians, and why adequate training and emotional support is important.


ORGANIZING COMMITTEE

António Carneiro – Internal Medicine and Intensive Medicine
Hospital da Luz Arrábida – Portugal, Bioethics Study Group – Portuguese Internal Medicine Society 

Catarina Simões – Nurse Specialist in Community and Medical-Surgical Care 
Santa Maria Health School, Porto – Portugal, EAPC Task Force for the Dying/ International Collaborative for Best Care for the Dying Person

Daniel Cunha – Nurse Specialist in Medical-Surgical Care
Santa Maria Health School, Porto  – Portugal

Rui Carneiro – Internal Medicine and Palliative Medicine
Hospital da Luz Arrábida, Bioethics Study Group – Portuguese Internal Medicine Society 

SCIENTIFIC COMMISSION

John Ellershaw – Professor of Palliative Medicine
Liverpool University, EAPC Task Force for the Dying/ International Collaborative for Best Care for the Dying Person

Susie Wilkinson – Palliative Care Unit
Liverpool University, EAPC Task Force for the Dying/ International Collaborative for Best Care for the Dying Person

Paal Piret – Anthropologist
Paracelsus Medical, University Salzburg – Palliative Care Research Institute, EAPC Task Force for the Dying/ International Collaborative for Best Care for the Dying Person

Agnes van der Heide – Public Health
Erasmus MC – Netherlands, EAPC Task Force for the Dying/ International Collaborative for Best Care for the Dying Person

Marisa Martín-Roselló – Geriatrics and Palliative Care
Fundación Cudeca – Espanha, EAPC Task Force for the Dying/ International Collaborative for Best Care for the Dying Person

Edna Gonçalves – Oncology and Internal Medicine
Centro Hospitalar de S. João, Porto – Portugal

Teresa Sarmento – Oncology
Centro Hospitalar de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro – Portugal

Helena Beça – Family Physician and Palliative Care
Médico de Família, Cuidados Paliativos, Equipa Comunitária de Apoio a Cuidados Paliativos, Vila Nova de Gaia – Portugal