She writes, “Having worked on advocacy on this issue for a number of years, it is evident that while progress is being made, it is not happening quickly enough.” 

Some statistics 
The blog reveals the following disturbing statistics:

• 40 million people could benefit from palliative care worldwide
• Less than 10% access it globally
• 42% of the world’s countries have no hospice and pallaitive care at all
• 5.5 billion people live in countries with low or no access to medications for effective pain treatment
• 18 million people die in pain and distress each year as they don’t have access to palliative care, including medicines to treat pain
• 21 million children need palliative care globally  

Causes of slow progress
Describing reasons for the slow progress Morris explains that palliative care is a relatively new concept, so it is understandable that there is inequitable access. In addition challenges to its development include a lack of understanding about what it means and can offer, a lack of political will and policies, legal and regulatory barriers which prevent availability and access to essential medicines and lack of training of health professionals. Added to this, most global and national health systems focus their targets on saving lives rather than providing quality care at the end of life. 

“With mortality remaining at 100%, the growing incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including cancer and dementia, and an aging population, we need much more focus on sustainable ways to ensure quality care as we live and approach the end of our lives,” says Morris. 

Potential power of patient voices
Morris makes the point that social justice movements that have been led by people affected, such as the movement around access to HIV treatment, can result in dramatic social change. To this end she has written a provocation piece exploring some of the questions around the extent to which people living with and affected by life-limiting illness should be used to advocate globally for palliative care access. 

The provocation piece cites the powerful advocacy often undertaken by parents of children with palliative care needs and the relative advantages and disadvantages of this advocacy for grieving parents. Examples she includes are The Children’s Hospice Association of Scotland being founded in 1992 by bereaved parents and professionals as well as the founding of a children’s palliative care organisation in Norway by a parent who discovered there were no relevant services for her daughter in that country. 

What is the potential power of these voices, asks Morris. She closes with this thought-provoking question: “Perhaps we need to readdress the existing power balance and look at who is speaking on behalf of who to develop a more impactful social justice movement on the issue?”

Click here to read the full blog post.

Claire Morris is the Global Advocacy Director at the Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance, and has been working in the social sector for the past 15 years. She is a committed and passionate advocate for hospice and palliative care globally. Claire has advocated for palliative care at the UN High Level Meetings on HIV and Non-Communicable Diseases and the World Health Assembly and sat on the UN Social Protection and Care and Support Working Group for two years representing the Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance. She has also organised World Hospice and Palliative Care Day since it began in 2005 with approximately 60-70 countries participating in the events.