The conference organisers invite all members of the multidisciplinary team to participate in this conference by submitting an abstract via the conference website. The 3rd International ICPCN Conference: Inspiration, Innovation, Integration is set to take place in the city of Durban, South Africa from 30 May to 2 June 2018. 

Building on the successes of ICPCN’s two previous conferences held in Mumbai in 2014 and Buenos Aires in 2016, this conference promises to bring together a global community of compassionate and dedicated people who work with children with life-limiting and life-threatening illnesses and conditions and are looking for inspirational ways to provide the finest care for these children and their families.

Conference theme
Prof Julia Downing, Chief Executive of the ICPCN and conference chair says, “We have chosen the theme Inspiration, Innovation, Integration for our 3rd ICPCN Conference to take place in the vibrant, multi-cultural seaside resort city of Durban, South Africa, from 30 May – 2 June 2018. This multidisciplinary conference will bring together the very best leaders in the field, the most experienced practitioners and trainers as well as those who are just starting out on the journey to bring palliative care to children in their communities, in order for us to learn from one another. We are also very excited to be working in partnership with the Hospice Palliative Care Association of South Africa (HPCA), PatchSA and Umduduzi, Hospice Care for Children to ensure that this conference will leave a lasting legacy for the people of the host country.”

Expanding on the reason for this theme choice, Prof Downing says, “ICPCN has been witness to the encouraging growth of children’s palliative care provision worldwide in the last decade, with new programmes and services being introduced in some places where none existed just a year ago. We are also privileged to have worked together with funders and local organisations to play a part in the development of these services. What has become increasingly evident is that while the basic tenets of the discipline remain immutable, children’s palliative care seldom looks, feels or sounds quite the same in any two countries or even within settings based in the same country.”

Learning from one another
She goes on to encourage people from all disciplines to consider submitting an abstract by saying, “What makes an international conference on children’s palliative care such an exciting opportunity is that we all have so much to learn from one another. Those who have very little in the way of resources are often the most resourceful and inspirational amongst us and those with adequate resources can be incredibly innovative in how they present their services to meet the unique needs of the children within their community. It has also become clear that unless services network and integrate with other organisations within their communities and those who wield power at higher levels, whether these be governmental or nongovernmental, we will never realise our vision of a world where children’s palliative care is available to every child who needs it.

ICPCN invites you to share your research, your successes, your most inspired and innovative ideas and we want to hear how you have gone about integrating with others to improve your reach and impact.” 

To find out more about the conference, to register at the Early Bird rates and to submit your abstract, please visit the conference website at www.icpcnconference.org