The upcoming Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA) Conference will be taking place in beautiful downtown Ottawa between October 12 and 14 – just a few steps from the seat of our federal government. What better place to gather palliative professionals, students, volunteers, and community members than at the confluence of Canadian culture, politics, and history?
It has been nearly four years since CHPCA last gathered interested and invested Canadians in person. This return to proximity will no doubt usher in a renewed enthusiasm for the work we do every day to ensure that everyone in Canada has access to quality palliative care – regardless of their postal code or tax bracket.
Amid the significant changes our healthcare sector experienced over the last few years, the CHPCA Conference offers a timely opportunity for the palliative care community to come together and redefine its place in the Canadian healthcare system. Nothing is more emblematic of this revolutionary sentiment than the Burning Issues Panels that will be taking place throughout the conference. From discussing the role of paramedics, to examining how social determinants of health impact palliative care, to exploring what leads people to want to die, the Burning Issues Panels will spark conversations about challenging topics and foster an environment for us to think critically, connect, and innovate together.
(These panels will complement the extensive and diverse array of workshops, oral presentations and posters on deck, which you can view in the detailed program.)
It all comes back to proximity. To closeness. The CHPCA Conference offers us all the opportunity to meet each other and share – ideas, stories, experiences – unfiltered by a webcam, word processor or character limit. It’s an opportunity to make friends, to celebrate achievements, to bond over shared experiences, and to connect with peers from all sides of the country.
As members of the palliative care community, is closeness not at the heart of what we strive for? Bringing comfort to those in distress by being there – by being present and attentive to their individual needs. It is our relationships that drive us forward. Relationships that nurture our minds and fill our hearts. We carry the memories of all those we meet forward with us, from patient to peer, and they influence us in both minuscule and majestic ways.
People are at the heart of the “why” and “how” in health care overall, but especially so in palliative care. These foundations ensure that as we strive to innovate, to challenge our biases, to educate, and to demand change, that we do not lose sight of the true purpose of our work. Because everyone with a life-limiting illness in Canada should have access to the kind of quality, culturally safe, and timely palliative care that they deserve.
Times of change present us with challenges and opportunities. While the challenges in Canadian health care are important and shouldn’t be ignored, we can’t let them overshadow the opportunities available to us. Healthcare in Canada is coming to an inflection point. The need for palliative care and all the facets of care that it encompasses is growing, and yet so many lack access. We are facing a crisis – and it is during times of crisis that radical change is most needed, and most likely to take root.
If we are bold enough, loud enough, and beholden only to compassion and care, who’s to say that we can’t plant the seeds for a palliative revolution this October?
Join your community at the CHPCA Conference in Ottawa from October 12-14, 2023. Register today at chpca.ca/conference.