P95 Above and beyond - the power of international partnerships

Introduction This project brings together partners from India, South Africa, Malawi and the UK to expand children’s palliative care services in Maharashtra state in India and in Malawi. The project results have prompted commitment to palliative care service development above and beyond the original project scope. It demonstrates how international partnerships can inspire and promote others to take on palliative care to meet the huge need for palliative care around the world. Methods The project uses international donor funds to integrate children’s palliative care into existing services in both urban and rural settings. Each partner brings to the project distinct skills and experience; ranging from project and donor management, paediatric palliative care knowledge, training and mentorship expertise, and advocacy skills. Results The mix of these skills has seen the following key results: The development of children’s palliative care services in 5 new settings. The integration of children’s palliative care into health service curricula. The inclusion of children’s palliative care in draft palliative care policy. The project has also prompted extended impact: The National Rural Health Mission (Jawhar, India) has committed to a wider programme of palliative care service delivery and is already funding training, staff and services. District hospitals in Malawi are showing strong interest in developing palliative care services Project stakeholders are increasingly seeking extra funding and gifts in kind to support and develop children’s palliative care services. Discussion The collaborative implementation of this project has proved to be a catalyst for further development of palliative care than originally anticipated. We would like to share our collaborative approach, together with more detailed results to inspire and encourage others to engage in partnerships to maximise impact and rise to the great challenge of meeting the huge need for palliative care internationally.