Integrating palliative care into primary health care: Indian perspectives

Abstract

Access to palliative care is essential in primary healthcare as most patients and families prefer end-of-life care at home. However, integrating palliative care into the community is often lacking, disrupting the continuity of care. In a low-middle-income country like India, palliative care is usually provided in tertiary and secondary hospitals. Primary palliative care is sporadically offered in some parts of India, like Kerala, through a neighbourhood network of palliative care (NNPC) programmes. The availability of trained providers, funding, and awareness, limits the capacity to provide primary palliative care. It leads to people accessing care at their end of life in acute hospitals, receiving unnecessary medical interventions, and diminishing their quality of dying. The need for developing palliative care in the community in a low-middle-income country like India is explicated here.

Keywords:

• Primary Health Care
• Palliative Care
• Perspectives
• Community Health Workers
• integration
• home based care‌

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Disclaimer statements

Conflicts of interest No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethics approval None.

Additional information

Funding

The study was enabled through the ICMR – ICRC funded project [RFC No.NCD/NTF/6/2019 20] dated 18.9.2019. This review article is a part of the funding project.

Notes on contributors

Radhika R. Pai

Dr Radhika R Pai, Assistant Professor, Department of Fundamentals of Nursing, Manipal College of Nursing, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Udupi, Karnataka, 576104, India.

Malathi G. Nayak

Dr Malathi G Nayak, Associate Professor, Department of Community Health Nursing, Manipal College of Nursing, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Udupi, Karnataka, 576104, India.

Anita Jesline Serrao

Ms Anita Jesline Serrao, Research Assistant, Manipal College of Nursing, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Udupi, Karnataka, 576104, India.

Naveen Salins

Dr Naveen Salins, Professor & Head, Department of Palliative Medicine and Supportive Care, Kasturba Medical College, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Udupi, Karnataka, 576104, India.