Press Release

62 countries launch first ever World Hospice and Palliative Care Day, 8th October 2005

“An important global event” - Archbishop Tutu

10 October 2005

A twenty-four hour global musical marathon incorporating over 440 concerts in at least 58 countries; a global online petition; soap box orators in Switzerland; book launches in Norway and the Czech Republic; art exhibitions in Hong Kong, Austria and Australia; a youth drama competition in South Africa; a cycle rally in Nepal, and a street parade in the USA – these are just some of the 500-plus events that will mark the first ever World Hospice and Palliative Care Day on October 8th 2005. In all, 62 countries are taking part, with the UK – the birthplace of the hospice movement – leading the way with over 200 events planned.

World Hospice and Palliative Care Day, a unified day of action to celebrate and support hospice and palliative care around the world, has been developed by 14 major voluntary organisations involved in the sector, from Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americas and Australasia.  It is backed by Archbishop Desmond Tutu who urged people to get involved and give their support adding, “This day is an important global event.”

The hospice and palliative care movement is dedicated to providing support to people living with a terminal illness, as well as to their carers and families. It aims to ensure that their physical, emotional and spiritual needs are taken care of so that they can live with their illness and face death as comfortably as possible. Around the world, one million people die every week, and it is estimated that 100 million people could benefit from basic palliative care, although the number of people that have access to it falls far below this level (see Notes to Editors, below).

Mick Thorpe, Chairman of the Help the Hospices’ UK forum for hospice and palliative care worldwide, speaking on behalf of the organisations behind World Hospice and Palliative Care Day, said, “This is an issue that affects literally everybody on the planet.  We would all like our lives – and the lives of those we love – to end peacefully and comfortably.”

ABOUT THE EVENTS:

Voices for Hospices
An integral part of the day will be Voices for Hospices – the world’s largest simultaneous singing event in aid of hospice care.  Choral concerts organised by hospices and local campaigners will take place in at least 58 countries on October 8th at 7.30pm local time. Each concert lasts for more than an hour, so that the next time-zone’s concerts begin before the previous ones have ended. Thus the sound of singing is carried across the globe, starting in New Zealand and ending on the West Coast of the United States 24 hours later. It is estimated that there may be up to 50 times as many concerts as the ten that took place at different locations for Live8 in July. Details of many of the concerts can be found at www.voicesforhospices.org/ConcertList.html.

Voices for Hospices began in 1991 and have taken place every two to three years since that time, raising more than £4.5 million for the international hospice movement. In 2003 there were over 500 performances world-wide. This year, fourteen new countries have so far joined Voices for Hospices: Colombia, Cuba, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Denmark, Egypt, Gambia, Gibraltar, Greece, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Mozambique, The Philippines, Serbia & Montenegro, Tanzania and Venezuela.

Local Events
In addition to the Voices for Hospices concerts, local events are taking place in more than 50 countries around the world - from large scale national conferences on aspects of palliative care, through to community initiatives such as awareness days, poetry readings, and temporary palliative care clinics or ‘medical camps’. Details of many of the events can be found at www.worldday.org/news_events.asp.

World Report Presented to HRH Princess Anne
Suffering at the End of Life – The State of the World is a report on the current situation of hospice and palliative care globally that will be launched to mark World Hospice and Palliative Care Day. Produced by Help the Hospices, this important report will describe the principles of hospice and palliative care and highlight the current issues facing its delivery through facts and figures, case studies and photographs. The report will also give recommendations on what needs to be done to further develop and improve hospice and palliative care service delivery throughout the world. The report will be launched in the presence of Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal at an event at the British Academy in London on 5th October.

Global Webcast
The UK charity, Rosetta Life (www.rosettalife.org), which provides creative outlets for hospice users through links with musicians, film makers and artists, will present two live musical webcasts on the morning and afternoon of World Hospice and Palliative Care Day. The Rosetta Requiem, funded by Culture Online, is a series of original music and film created by child and adult hospice users working in partnership with top musicians and film makers including Billy Bragg, Jarvis Cocker, Roots Manuva, Michael Nyman, Emily Young and Asif Kapadia will be broadcast over the internet.

Global Petition
Thousands of people around the world are expected to sign an online petition requesting governments and policy makers:

• To recognise the needs of people living with a terminal illness and their families
  
• To increase the availability of hospice and palliative care to meet those needs
  
• To act on the Korea Declaration on palliative care which calls for improvements in care provision (to see a copy of the declaration go to www.hpc-associations.net)

The petition will be available online from 19th August at www.worldday.org.

Musical Game
An online interactive musical game that captures the spirit of World Hospice and Palliative Care Day will be emailed to thousands of people around the world. The aim of the game is to communicate key messages about hospice and palliative care while the player is put in the shoes of conductor of the “world’s voices”, endeavouring to raise the level of singing to a crescendo. The game is available at http://www.worldday.org/game.asp.

ABOUT WORLD HOSPICE AND PALLIATIVE CARE DAY:
It is hoped that World Hospice and Palliative Care Day will provide an opportunity to increase understanding of the nature and value of hospice and palliative care and to destroy a number of myths – for example, to explain that hospice care is not about helping someone to die but instead about helping them, and everyone that cares for them, to live as comfortably as possible with their illness.  Also that a hospice is a flexible and adaptable style of care and not just a building – care can be provided in a person’s home or via day care - and that care extends to the carers and family.

The Day will provide an opportunity to raise awareness on key issues:

• The need for all countries to include palliative care in their national health care programmes
  
• The urgent need for greater and more secure funding to support hospice and palliative care services world-wide
  
• The need for essential low cost opioid analgesics for pain and symptom control to be made available, particularly in resource-poor countries
  
• The need to extend and develop the lessons learned in hospice and palliative care into wider disease groups, particularly in relation to the HIV Aids pandemic
  
• To improve availability of palliative care for people in resource-poor countries – particularly in rural areas.  Also to reach marginalised groups throughout the world, such as prisoners, the homeless and those with special needs such as learning difficulties
  
• The need to integrate hospice and palliative care into all health care professionals’ education programmes, both under graduate and post graduate
  
• That palliative care should not be a last resort but should be provided concurrently with disease treatment such as ARVs or cancer treatment

To get involved, visit www.worldday.org  and www.voicesforhospices.org email worldday@helpthehospices.org.uk or call (UK 44) 207 520 8250.

Media enquiries (including images of hospice care):
Jo Pratt tel: 020 8699 6566 / 07734 566079 jopratt@jopratt.com
Katie Brewin tel: 0161 881 7753 katie.brewin@btinternet.com