Sharing Experiences of Home-Based Palliative Care and Advance Care Planning
Home healthcare refers to medical services provided at the patient's place of residence rather than in a hospital. Palliative care is a treatment approach focused on alleviating suffering and improving the quality of life for patients at the end of life. These two fields complement each other, enabling patients to prepare for their final journey with dignity in their own living spaces.
This symposium will focus on the intersection of home healthcare and palliative care, and is jointly organized by the Palliative Care and Clinical Ethics Center and the Public Medical Service Center. The event will provide an opportunity to share real-world experiences in home-based end-of-life care and the practical application of advance care planning, making it possible for patients to pass away peacefully at home.
The first session, titled "Home-Based End-of-Life Care: The Journey from Hospital to Home," will feature presentations on various cases of home-based palliative care practiced in different settings, including: experiences with family-style palliative care in Taiwan; the practice of hospital-based home healthcare and home-based end-of-life care in Korea; and home healthcare and end-of-life care in local communities.
The second session, titled "Walking Together Between Home and Hospital for ALS Patients: Advance Care Planning," will include presentations on critical decision-making moments according to the progression of ALS, as well as advance care planning from beginning to end. Experts from various fields will participate in a panel discussion based on real-life cases.
Cho Bir-yong, head of the Public Medical Service Center, stated, "A key goal of this symposium is to explore the roles that clinicians and the community should play to enable patients and their families to consider and prepare treatment directions together in their own living spaces, rather than in hospitals." He added, "In particular, there is a need for discussion on how to expand and institutionalize home-based care from the perspective of public healthcare."
Kim Beom-seok, head of the Palliative Care and Clinical Ethics Center, said, "For patients whose ability to communicate gradually declines as their disease progresses, such as those with ALS, it is very important to confirm and respect the patient's wishes early through advance care planning." He continued, "Through this symposium, we will strive to build a care system in which palliative care and home healthcare work together, enabling end-of-life patients to prepare for death in the way they wish."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
