OTTAWA, Dec. 4, 2018 /CNW/ - Many Canadians with life-limiting illnesses wish to remain independent and receive the care they need at home or in their community. Improved access to palliative care in a variety of settings is critical to making this happen.
Today, the Honourable Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Minister of Health, tabled in Parliament a Framework on Palliative Care in Canada. The Framework will help support improved access to palliative care by providing a useful reference point for governments, stakeholders, caregivers and communities to help identify common directions and opportunities, address gaps, and share best practices.
Palliative care is a crucial part of our health care system, providing much-needed support to individuals with life-limiting illnesses, and to their families and caregivers, during a very difficult time. Over the coming months, Health Canada will develop a federal implementation plan that will define next steps and federal actions linked to this Framework. It is expected that the implementation plan will be completed by summer 2019.
The Government of Canada will continue to work with provinces, territories, people living with life-limiting illnesses, caregivers, stakeholders, and communities to improve the quality and availability of palliative care for Canadians.
"We all deserve to live out the end of our lives in comfort and dignity. I believe that the wishes and needs of Canadians nearing the end of life must be at the centre of our approaches to care. I hope that Canadians will be inspired by this Framework."
The Framework on Palliative Care in Canada Act came into force on December 12, 2017 and required the Government of Canada to develop a framework designed to support improved access to palliative care in consultation with provincial and territorial governments, as well as palliative care providers.The Government of Canada has committed targeted funding of $6 billion over 10 years to provinces and territories to improve access to home and community care, including palliative care. The Government also allocated an additional $184.6 million over five years to improve home and palliative care for Indigenous communities.
The Government of Canada continues to work with individual jurisdictions to develop and finalize bilateral agreements. These agreements set out details of ‎how this targeted federal funding for home and community care—including palliative care—will be invested in each jurisdiction.
Nine bilateral agreements have been announced (New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan, Quebec, Nova Scotia, British Columbia and Yukon). Progress is being made on finalizing other bilateral agreements, and it is expected that all the agreements will be completed in the coming months.
Federal investments continue to help improve palliative care in a number of areas, including identifying national best practices, building research capacity, and providing supports for caregivers. For example, in February 2018, the Government of Canada announced funding for Pallium Canada to increase the capacity of health care providers to deliver palliative care in communities across the country.