Greater Washington Partnership for Palliative and End-of-Life Care

Welcome to The Greater Washington Partnership for
Palliative and End-of-Life Care, working to bring families,
providers, health professionals, consumers and the
public together to improve care for patients and families
coping with advanced illness and end-of-life issues.

NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

		Registration now open for April 2010 End-of-Life Nursing
		Education Consortium (ELNEC)!!! On April 22nd and 29th, GWP will be holding its 2nd annual ELNEC training session at the Veterans' Affairs Medical Center. This year, GWP has partnered with the National Catholic School of Social Services at the Catholic University of America to offer 12 continuing education credits to social workers who complete this training. The Howard University Hospital Division of Nursing, Department of Professional Development will continue to provide 12 continuing education credits to nurses who complete this training as well. In GWP's 2009 inaugural year, ELNEC has earned the reputation of providing quality trainers and educational experience at an affordable price of $65.00 per registrant. Register now for this highly anticipated training session!

NEW!!! CEUs for Social Workers! Earn 12 credits

		Call for Support for POLST in Washington, DC GWP's Public
		Policy Committee - under the leadership of GWP Board Member and Committee Chairperson Charles Sabatino - has proposed a new initiative to change from the Comfort Care Order (CCO) to a Physicians' Order for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST). Click here for more information, and to find out how you can support our dedication to improve care at the end of life. If your organization would like to support this task force, click here to complete our short survey.

		GWP Requests Feedback on Stocking Issue The Partnership
		has been working on the opioid stocking issue - an issue often found in Washington, D.C.'s low-income neighborhoods. If you know of someone who has experienced this problem, please let us know. Information that would be helpful for our research would be (1) the origin of the prescription (i.e. hospital, emergency room, general practitioner); (2) illness (i.e. reason for prescription); (3) prescription name; (4) name of the pharmacy unable to fulfill prescription; (5) reason given for not being able to fill the prescription. Click here to provide this information using the GWP feedback form. No other information on the patient is required, and anonymity will be honored. The name of the person providing the information will also remain confidential. Your assistance in finding a solution is most appreciated.

		Side-by-Side: Advance Care Planning Provisions in
		House Bill - America's Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 Click here to view a side-by-side comparison of the First Tri-Committee Bill (HR 3200 - Introduced version) and the Revised House Bill 3962 (10/29/09 version) prepared by GWP Public Policy Committee Chairperson, Charles Sabatino.

		Updated Clinical Practice Guidelines for Palliative Care.
		The National Consensus Project has released its second edition of Clinical Practice Guidelines for Quality Palliative Care. The Guidelines have been revised to offer the most current information on preferred practices for high quality palliative care. Visit the NCP website to learn more or obtain a copy of the Guidelines.

		Montgomery County, Maryland offers a report and
		analysis of their November 2008 Senior Summit online at http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/sentmpl.asp? url=/content/pio/senior/summit.asp. Click here to read more about Montgomery County's recent research and planning into how County services can better meet the needs of local seniors.

		New E-Newsletter on "Seniors and Caregivers" in
		Montgomery County, MD. The Montgomery County government has created a new e-newsletter on "Seniors and Caregivers." Subscribes will receive automatic updates on events and meetings, new or modified programs, benefits and services, changes in policies and/or laws, and other relevant information for seniors and caregivers in Montgomery County. To subscribe to this e-newsletter, please visit https://ext01.montgomerycountymd. gov/entp/s1p/esubpublic/newsubscriber.do.

		DC Develops Ombudsman Office for Medicaid Program.
		The District of Columbia is developing an Ombudsman Office that will work to ensure the safety and well-being of Medicaid beneficiaries in need of care and services to which they are entitled, as well as promote excellence and confidence in the DC Medicaid program. To read more about the new DC Ombudsman Office, including a list of services to be provided, please click here.

		DC, MD, and VA rated above national average in access
		to hospital-based palliative care. The Center to Advance Palliative Care has awarded the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia a grade of B, by comparison with a national average of C, in a new report card ranking the availability of hospital-based palliative care state by state. The Partnership urges the region to continue working to lead the nation in advancing the availability and the quality of palliative care services. Read the report card.

		LACRC Researches Latino Hospice Use in DC. The Latin
		American Cancer Research Coalition (LACRC) has completed a research paper funded by the National Cancer Institute on Latino hospice use in Washington DC. The research paper is available here on the Partnership website, with permission from Barbara Kreling, PhD, MPH, Cancer Control Program, Lombardi Cancer Center. Read the research paper.

		DC Offers Up-To-Date Information On Stimulus Funds.
		The DC government has created a new website, recovery.dc.gov, to inform the public about its efforts to apply for and allocate funds made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. An FAQ is also available on health-related funds at the following link: http://recovery.dc.gov/recovery/cwp/view, a,11,q,462367.asp.

Please join the Partnership and support our efforts to
make real changes in palliative and end-of-life care in
Greater Washington. Contact us for more information.

The Greater Washington Partnership for Palliative and End-of-Life Care

The Greater Washington
Partnership for Palliative
and End-of-Life Care: