16 Oct 2023

It is important for people to know and understand the importance of end-of life-care, also called palliative care, to terminally ill patients, so their final days are as painless as possible. 

Sadly, the great majority of people who need the care, do not receive it, with global estimates showing millions die every year without it. 

Assistant Minister of Health Mr Sethomo Mr Lelatisitswe said Botswana’s work with the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the Global Atlas of Palliative Care showed that only about 12 percent of the nearly 60 million adults and children in need of palliative care received it, with 18 million dying every year in pain and suffering, due to lack of access to the care and pain relief. 

Mr Lelatisitswe said the collective effort of stakeholders would increase awareness about palliative care as an important component of the right to health. He said this year’s theme ‘Compassionate Communities: 

Together for Palliative Care’, was appropriate. “I want to emphasise that the true meaning of compassion is to recognise the suffering of others and then actually take steps to help,” he said, adding the theme called for all to come together to support communities and each other now more than ever before, as palliative care was a shared responsibility. 

He said the WHO and Palliative Care International had declared the month of October as that for raising awareness about and advocating palliative care. The commemoration was therefore a vital opportunity to mobilise support for palliative care from communities and governments worldwide, he said. 

“The commemoration of this day is a reminder [that] we should celebrate life…despite numerous challenges that are brought about by disease and infirmity,” he said. Palliative care patients, he said, included those with cancer, Cerebral Vascular Accident (CVA), Severe Disability and other conditions. 

He said in Botswana many cases remained unreported owing to the fact they were not registered, as family would be taking care of the patient. 

He urged communities to be compassionate, care for people, and assist those with chronic and end-of-life illnesses to receive care from home. In his remarks, WHO Country Resprentative, Dr Theo Ntenegi said palliative care was explicitly recognised as a human right to health, therefore every individual should have access to it. 

“It should be delivered through person centered and integrated health services that cater to the specific needs and preferences of each and every individual,” he said.  He added that nearly 60 million people around the globe were in need of palliative care and the majority were in low and middle-income countries.

Dr Ntenegi therefore called for continuous investment in training and education of health care professionals to deliver palliative care services, while promoting research to advance their understanding of it in local context. ends