Use Your Voice to help improve Palliative Care

Would you like to use your voice to help those living with a life limiting condition and help to influence developments in palliative care across the island of Ireland?

                                             If your answer is yes, we would like to hear from you!

All Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care (AIIHPC) established Voices4Care in 2013 to help inform our work and influence the wider palliative care sector across health and social care in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. We focus on palliative care education, research, policy and practice.  Voices4Care particularly considers palliative care for adults.

AIIHPC is now looking for new volunteers to become members of Voices4Care from 28 March 2022 until the 9 May 2022. Joining will give you the chance to be part of something that can make a real difference, and influence palliative care.

Paula Pinto, AIIHPC Programme Manager, Policy and Practice

explains what Voices4Care is and who should consider joining the Group.

Who are Voices4Care members?
Voices4Care members are individuals aged 18 and over living in Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland from all backgrounds who are either:

• people with a life limiting illness and palliative care needs
• carers or former carers of people with palliative care needs
• citizens with an interest in palliative care

How will Voices4Care members influence palliative care?
We work with a wide range of people and organisations who plan, research, educate or provide palliative care. We do not provide palliative care services but support those that do.

People with palliative care needs, their families, carers and interested citizens bring unique insights about care which are invaluable for those providing or making decisions about palliative care.

As a Voices4Care member you will be supported and offered opportunities to share your views and experiences. Here are some examples:

• giving your views on education programmes, for example providing feedback on training materials
• helping to identify areas for research and advising researchers with their projects
• helping to develop palliative care policy
• support development of the online gateway to information and resources about palliative care, AIIHPC’s The Palliative Hub
• Informing public understanding and awareness around palliative care, death, dying, loss and caring, including through AIIHPC’s annual Palliative Care Week. This may include commenting on draft materials, participating in interviews or recording promotional videos
• Voices4Care members in Northern Ireland will also be offered the opportunity to attend meetings of ‘Palliative Care in Partnership – Voices4Care’ which is a sub group of the Regional Palliative Care Programme. At the meetings, members will be consulted regarding the key priorities of the Regional Palliative Care Programme (for more information please visit their website: Palliative Care in Partnership (hscni.net).

Monica Burns, Voices4Care Member shares her experience of her time with Voices4Care

How to get involved?
If you are interested in becoming a member of Voices4Care, please find out more by reading the Guidance for Applicants and completing the Voices4Care Expression of Interest Form.

If you have any questions, please email Paula Pinto, Programme Manager, at ppinto@aiihpc.org or alternatively call +353 (0) 871961430.

Download campaign promotional materials:

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