Comfort and Care Chronicles

Important Dates

Jan. 1st

• Happy New Year!
• Hot Tips
• Beyond the Stethoscope

Jan. 2nd

• Registration Deadline: FHPC
• Registration Deadline: Palliative Approach to Care with Dementia (PACD) 

Jan. 4th

• National Ribbon Skirt Day

Jan. 6th

• Epiphany

Jan. 7th

• Orthodox Christmas
• Registration Deadline: CAPCE

Jan. 14th

• Orthodox New Year

Jan. 15th

• Registration Deadline: EPM
• Palliative Approach to Care for Dementia (PACD)

Jan. 16th

• Fundamentals of Hospice Palliative Care (FHPC)

Jan. 20th

• Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Jan. 21st

• CAPCE

Jan. 22nd

• ECHO - Building Bridges Behind Bars

Jan. 24th

• International Day of Education

Jan. 27th

• International Holocaust Remembrance Day

Jan. 28th

• Essential Pain Management (EPM)

Jan. 29th

• Lunar New Year

Air Date: 01-JAN-2025

Palliative Care Leadership in the Community

Join our host Lori Gill as she is joined by Lynda Meeks, PPSMC with the NSMHPCN, and Tanya Baker, Director of Clinical Practice & Education with Bayshore, as they discuss Palliative Care Leadership in the Community.

The Importance of Palliative Care in Parkinson’s Disease

Palliative care is essential for people with Parkinson’s disease because it addresses the complex and evolving nature of the condition, which affects both physical and emotional well-being. As Parkinson’s progresses, individuals may experience debilitating symptoms such as pain, stiffness, difficulty with movement, and emotional challenges like anxiety or depression. Palliative care focuses on easing these symptoms, enhancing quality of life, and providing support for both the patient and their caregivers. It also helps manage the psychological and spiritual aspects of living with a chronic illness, offering a holistic approach that complements medical treatments. By integrating palliative care early on, people with Parkinson’s can receive personalized, compassionate support that improves their overall experience of the disease.

Building Bridges Behind Bars

Date: Wednesday, January 22nd, 2025

Time: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

Location: Zoom

Cost: Free

Join our host and special guest, Louise Brazier, Bereavement Services Coordinator, as they discuss the "Building Bridges Behind Bars" initiative. This initiative focuses on providing essential bereavement support to inmates and building capacity within correctional facilities. By addressing the unique challenges of delivering bereavement support to incarcerated individuals, the program aims to foster a compassionate approach that considers the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of this population.

Through collaborative learning and expert guidance, participants will gain the skills and knowledge necessary to build bridges of understanding and dignity in the correctional setting.

Fundamentals of Hospice Palliative Care

Upcoming Offerings:

Comprehensive Advanced Palliative Care Education (CAPCE) Program

The CAPCE program is uniquely designed for nurses (RPN, RN, NP) to develop their leadership and expertise skills in hospice palliative care across all healthcare sectors.



Pre-requisites:

To be eligible to participate in the CAPCE program, the following pre-requisites are required

• Fundamentals of Hospice Palliative Care Program
• A minimum of 1-year experience caring for people with a progressive, life-limiting illness
• Ability and interest to function as a Resource Nurse, providing primary level support and advanced level knowledge and skills for care team members in his or her organization
• Ability and interest to coach others, facilitate change and be a role model
• Sensitivity to the impact of attitudes, behaviours, life experiences, values, thoughts and feelings on the well-being and quality of life from the perspective of all partners in care

Duration: Approximately 5 months

Fee: $250

Upcoming Offerings:

ESSENTIAL PAIN MANAGEMENT (EPM)

Over the course of six weeks, NSMHPCN Palliative Pain and Symptom Management Consultants (PPSMCs) will work with EPM learners to provide foundational knowledge and skills in pain assessment, management, and evaluation from a palliative care approach. The focus of the course is on the pharmacological management of pain, which can then be applied to practice.

The focus of this course is on the pharmacological management of pain. Pain assessment, management, and evaluation are foundational skills for nurses working in any practice setting. EPM aims to equip nurses with a foundational knowledge base and skills around pain management, from a palliative care approach, that can be applied to your practice.

Course Components:

EPM: You will have a minimum of six weeks to complete the course. To receive an EPM certificate, you must:

• complete the four modules online and
• attend one 90-minute, mandatory online coaching session.

OPTIONAL MODULE: Advanced Approaches to Manage Pain (AMP) Preparation

Following EPM, you will have automatic access to the online AMP Preparation Module to explore advanced pain management.

Following successful completion of the AMP Preparation module, and the AMP module quiz, you’ll earn your AMP Preparation badge. At this time, you will be able to attend the 3-hour AMP coaching session. To receive an AMP certificate, you must complete:

• the online AMP Preparation Module
• one mandatory 3-hour, AMP coaching session with case-based activities to practice your skills

All course components are mandatory, including attendance at all virtual in-class learning sessions.

Pre-requisite: None

Duration: Approximately 8 weeks

Fee: $40

Upcoming Offerings:

A Palliative Approach to Care with Dementia

Taking a palliative approach to care improves the quality of care provided and enhances the overall well-being of the person with dementia and their family and caregivers. However assessing and managing symptoms and ensuring the plan of care for someone living with dementia maintains their dignity and follows their wishes, goals, and values can be difficult when the disease reaches the stage where the person is not able to speak for themselves.

Course Overview:

This workshop’s learning objectives:

• Describe the prevalence and pathophysiology of the various types of dementia
• Better support the person living with dementia and their family/caregivers through end of life
• Understand some of the commonly used medications in dementia
• Understand specialized tools available for symptom assessment and management in dementia

Education specific to dementia for health care professionals allows for:

• Better symptom management as symptom assessment and management is more complex in the context of cognitive impairment
• Improved communication between family/caregivers and health care professionals by giving health care professionals strategies for facilitating open and honest discussions about condition, prognosis, and end-of-life preferences
• Effective interdisciplinary collaboration to tailor the plan of care to the unique needs of each patient and their family/caregivers living with dementia
• Increased caregiver support by better recognizing their unique needs and providing resources, education, and support during an extended illness journey that can place a significant burden on family caregivers
• Improved coping skills for healthcare professionals to promote resiliency and minimize the risk of burnout

Upcoming Offerings:

Canadian Serious Illness Conversations (CSIC)

This program equips healthcare professionals with the skills to have compassionate and effective conversations with patients, families, and caregivers facing serious illness. Focusing on person-centred values, goals, and wishes, these conversations help reduce confusion and ensure that care decisions align with what matters most to the individual. The training includes a self-learning module and a facilitated session, guiding professionals in the use of the Serious Illness Conversation Guide developed by Ariadne Labs and Pallium Canada.

Fee: FREE

Request a Speaker for Palliative Education

To request a speaker for a presentation at your organization or service group, we invite you to complete the online request form which can be accessed using the button below. Alternatively, you may contact Lori Gill, Education Specialist, directly via email at lori@nsmhpcn.ca.

Not sure where to begin your palliative education journey?

Recommended order:

• Fundamentals of Hospice Palliative Care (FHPC)

• Advance Palliative Practice Skills (APPS)

• Comprehensive Advanced Palliative Care Education (CAPCE)

In no particular order:

• A Palliative Approach to Care with Dementia

• Canadian Serious Illness Conversations (CSIC)

• Death Cafe

• ECHO Palliative Care Project

• Essential Pain Management (EPM)

• Learning Essential Approaches to Palliative Care (LEAP)

• Pills, Pumps & Patches: The Pharmacologic Management of Pain in Palliative Patients