May 2nd to 8th marks Hospice Palliative Care Week in Canada. This is a great opportunity to raise awareness about hospice palliative care, and this year in particular, to take a moment to remember those who have passed.
Understanding Palliative Care, Hospice Care and End-of-Life Care
Although the terms palliative care, hospice care and end-of-life care are often used interchangeably, there are differences among them.
Palliative care is both a philosophy and an approach to care. Palliative care is not restricted to care during the last months or days of life. Rather, palliative care can be used along side curative treatments. WHO ( World Health Organization) defines Palliative Care as an approach to care that aims to: “Improve the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problems associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other problems, physical, psychosocial and spiritual.”
Hospice care, on the other hand, usually refers to the last months of life and brings with it an association with the place of care as a specialized facility. Hospice Centres for example
End-of-life care more accurately reflects the emphasis on the last days and hours of life.
Hospice Palliative Care Information & Resources:
- Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association (CHPCA)
- About Hospice Palliative Care (PDF from CHPCA)
- 20 Myths & Facts (PDF from CHPCA)
- Fact Sheet & Stats about Hospice Palliative Care in Canada (PDF from CHPCA)
- Éducaloi’s Senior’s Guide, The Law & Health Care, Caregivers: Practical Legal Tools
Hospice Palliative Care Residences in the Outaouais
Maison Mathieu-Froment-Savoie
170 Rue Sherbrooke
Gatineau, QC J8Y 2L6
819 770-3900
Résidence le Monarque
532 Rue Notre Dame
Montebello, QC J0V 1L0
819 309-0888
Maison des Collines
99 Chemin Burnside
Wakefield, QC J0X 3G0
819 459-1233
