What is World Hospice and Palliative Care Day?
When does World Hospice and Palliative Care Day take place?
What are the aims of World Hospice and Palliative Care Day?
Who organises World Hospice and Palliative Care Day?
What has happened on previous World Hospice and Palliative Care Days?
Who can get involved?
How can you get involved?
How can you keep informed about the Day?
Contact us
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is a unified day of action to celebrate and support hospice and palliative care around the world.
The theme for World Day 2011 with Voices for Hospices which took place on October 8 2011 was "Many diseases, many lives, many voices - palliative care for non-communicable conditions".
This years theme focussed on how people living with conditions which are not infectious can benefit from palliative care. Non-communicable conditions (cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory conditions diabetes) make up 60% of death worldwide. 80% of these occur in low and middle income countries. Palliative care could benefit many of these people and yet it is often not available. Globally, non-communicable diseases will increase by 17% in the next 10 years.
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day takes place on the second Saturday of October every year and Voices for Hospices takes place on the same date every two years.
Future dates are:
October 13 2012 - World Hospice and Palliative Care Day
- To share our vision to increase the availability of hospice and palliative care throughout the world by creating opportunities to speak out about the issues
- To raise awareness and understanding of the needs – medical, social, practical, spiritual – of people living with a life limiting illness and their families
- To raise funds to support and develop hospice and palliative care services around the world
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is organised by a committee of the Worldwide Palliative Care Alliance, a network of hospice and palliative care national and regional organisations that support the development of hospice and palliative care worldwide. The Day is facilitated by Help the Hospices, the UK national charity for hospices. To view members of the organising committee, go to our partners page.
Every year approximately 70 countries take part in the celebrations with activities including public awareness raising campaigns, advocacy with policy makers, fundraising events and public launches.
Find out more about previous World Hospice and Palliative Care Days.
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day 2009.
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day 2008.
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day 2007.
World Hospice and Palliative Care Day 2006.
For more information, about World Hospice and Palliative Care Day 2005, please read the evaluation
Executive summary
Full evaluation
The day is for anyone and everyone who cares about or is involved in hospice and palliative care anywhere in the world. If you are an organisation or an individual, with or without experience of hospice and palliative care, you can do something to support hospice and palliative care worldwide.
To get involved with World Hospice and Palliative Care Day, visit the Get involved page. This gives you ideas and suggestions on what you can do on the day to support people living with life-limiting illnesses and their families.
Don't forget to register your event.
To keep informed about World Hospice and Palliative Care Day you can:
Subscribe to the World Hospice and Palliative Care Day newsletter
Join Twitter and follow our regular online updates
Contact your national and regional hospice and palliative care organisation
Please contact the organisers for any information or queries that you may have on worldday@helpthehospices.org.uk or call +44(0)207 520 8250 .
About hospice and palliative care around the world
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