Most Health Care professionals encounter dying people, but in palliative care supporting the dying and their loved ones is the work of specialist and advanced practitioners. Definitions of palliative care (cf WHO 2005) suggest an active and creative approach that attends to physical, psychosocial and spiritual dimensions of patient need.

Central to this work is the palliation of symptoms because the disease is not responsive to curative treatment. The management of pain and symptoms is therefore at the heart of good palliative care.

The module will provide students with the opportunity to develop a comprehensive understanding of effective pain and symptom relief strategies, and will include both pharmacological and non-pharmacological methodologies.

The broad bases of the treatment regimes recognise the breadth of the "pain and death" which demands a holistic approach. Thus the concept of total pain will be considered, as will the associated notion of suffering. Under these circumstances the need for exquisite care practice highlights the value of the multi-disciplinary team. The module is designed for practitioners who work with palliative care patients and lead practice in any clinical and/or supportive care setting.

Assessment

Studies will take place in St Helena Hospice Education Centre, Colchester. The Hospice is a specialist palliative care unit with a full complement of specialist practitioner in the care and support of patients and families with advanced disease, the dying and bereaved. The module will be taught by a multi professional team. The module will be assessed through 8 x 1,000 word clinical protocols.

23 September 2013 to 16 December 2013
Course dates: 23, 30 September 2013, 7, 14, 21 October 2013, 4, 11, 18, 25 November 2013 and 2, 9 and 16 December 2013
Submission date: 6 December 2014

Teaching days and times are for guidance only and are subject to change.

Informal enquiries and discussions with the tutorial staff at St. Helena Hospice Education Centre are welcomed.

Sheliagh Cheesman
Tel 01206 851560
Email education@sthelenahospice.org.uk

For an application form contact:

Rana Ahmed
Tel 0845 196 4614
Email rana.ahmed@anglia.ac.uk

Please note: all correspondence is conducted via the email address you provide when you apply, and you should therefore ensure that any spam filters do not block emails ending in @anglia.ac.uk.

We strongly recommend that you check your email regularly, as it is helpful to us and to you if you respond promptly when we contact you. It is essential that you let us know if your email address changes.