NewsLine - September 2011 - (Page 43)

Quarter 3 – 2011 FOCUS ON COMPASSION a quarterly newsletter Successes of the CHAT project • Palliative care was fully established as part of the health structure in 13 rural hospitals. As a result, 11,532 patients living with AIDS and their families were cared for with home based palliative care. An additional 2,695 individuals living with other life threatening diseases, such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes, have received access to palliative care. With 14,227 patients and families served so far, these palliative care programs will continue to serve their communities into the future. • A working Palliative Care (PC) Team at each site was trained and mentored in palliative care, including a palliative care coordinator, assistant, chaplain, social worker, and clinical officer. All PC teams received a three-week training in palliative care and extensive supervision at their sites. Additionally, teams attended bi-annual management meetings with the other ELCT PC teams in Arusha, Tanzania. Eight PC staff members received a diploma in palliative care in either Kampala,Uganda or Nairobi, Kenya. Marangu Hospital palliative care team stands with a local family receiving palliative care and OVC services. CHAT Project Ends but Palliative Care Continues in Tanzania The USAID-funded project leaves a lasting legacy within the ELCT health care system. The success of the Continuum of Care for People Living with HIV/AIDS (CHAT) project in Tanzania cannot be overstated. CHAT set the stage for the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania (ELCT) to enhance the provision of quality palliative care and support through its system of health care. It is a successful story of change. Prior to CHAT, the ELCT health care system did not consider palliative care as part of its service provision. It now views it as essential. At the final stakeholders meeting, the leadership of ELCT health services proclaimed that regardless of continued funding from donors, their system of health care now actively provides palliative care. Background In 2007 FHSSA, in partnership with the ELCT and the African Palliative Care Association (APCA), started a $5 million project with funding from PEPFAR/USAID under the New Partner Initiative (NPI). The intent of the CHAT project was to expand palliative care services to 13 Lutheran Hospital sites in rural Tanzania. The concept was based on the successful work conducted at Selian Hospital where an interdisciplinary team at the hospital supported a network of home-based care (HBC) volunteers to provide quality palliative care to people living with HIV/AIDS in the surrounding community. A team from Gilchrist Hospice Care visits the palliative care program at Nkoaranga Hospice. September, 2011 | 1

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NewsLine - September 2011

NewsLine – September 2011
No Pain, All Gain
A Message From Don
We Earned Our Merit Badge in Clinical Excellence (display ad)
New Study on Dementia Patients
Custom-Print Marketplace (display ad)
Circle of Life Award 2011 Honorees
The Transitions Program at Redmond-Sisters Hospice
Recruiting Problems? HMR (display ad)
The Voice of NCHPP
The Transdisciplinary Team Model
Hospice Care Wins Big Impact Award
New Tool for Choosing a Quality Hospice
2011 Hospice Quilt
Coming This Winter: National Buyer’s Guide
Member News and Notes
Collaboration. The Corridor Group (display ad)
Regulatory Tip of the Month
Educational Offerings
Back Cover
FHSSA Newsletter

NewsLine - September 2011