“The Competency Framework provides a good business case for the appropriate staffing needs for palliative care as it enforces the importance of interdisciplinary palliative education and teamwork.”
Dr. Ebru Kaya, President
Canadian Society of Palliative Care Physicians
Departmental Division Director Palliative Medicine
University of Toronto
“The Competency Framework provides a good business case for the appropriate staffing needs for palliative care as it enforces the importance of interdisciplinary palliative education and teamwork.”
Dr. Ebru Kaya, President
Canadian Society of Palliative Care Physicians
Departmental Division Director Palliative Medicine
University of Toronto
A Look at the Bigger Picture of Palliative Care and the Importance of Resource Sharing
The Canadian Society of Palliative Care Physicians (CSPCP) is intimately familiar with the Interdisciplinary Palliative Care Competency Framework (Competency Framework). The CSPCP provided input into the competencies during the early stages of development of the Competency Framework, and they continue to support the framework today. Given CSPCP’s work in educating physicians in palliative care, they have a vested interest in the framework’s implementation and dissemination.
To provide optimum health care for all Canadians, governments, groups and organizations must work together to share information and resources. The Competency Framework is a key tool for this interdisciplinary structure as it promotes standardized palliative care across disciplines. While CSPCP’s training programs are currently focused on physicians, locally, some programs have plans to expand training to social workers and other allied health professionals who are interested and involved in community health. The CSPCP will use the Competency Framework as a tool in the development of curriculum to assess the skills and competencies of the professionals who will provide palliative care. Using the framework will also ensure that patients and their families can feel confident that their care providers have received standardized training. Every person that CSPCP trains is one more person who has the knowledge and skills to provide care to someone with a life-limiting illness or chronic disease.
In terms of human health resources, Dr. Kaya believes that the Competency Framework provides a good business case for the appropriate staffing needs for palliative care as it enforces the importance of interdisciplinary palliative education and teamwork. As health care professionals use this framework for staffing purposes, Canadians will have greater access to better palliative care, which currently can be difficult to access depending on factors such as location and diagnosis.
Source: Tremblay, D., Roberge, D., Touati, N., Maunsell, E., & Berbiche, D. (2017). Effects of interdisciplinary teamwork on patient-reported experience of cancer care. BMC Health Services Research, 17(1): 218. doi: 10.1186/s12913-017-2166-7
The Canadian Society of Palliative Care Physicians is an organization consisting of palliative care physicians and physicians who are passionate about palliative care. The CSPCP is committed to the progression of palliative care for patients and their families, through the development and improvement of palliative medicine and training.
This project has been made possible through a financial contribution from Health Canada. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the views of Health Canada.
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