June 3, 2013
Online campaigning community Avaaz.org urges everyone to sign a petition on access to palliative care. The Prague Charter was drafted recently by the European Association for Palliative Care (EAPC), the International Association for Palliative Care (IAHPC), the Worldwide Palliative Care Alliance (WPCA) and Human Rights Watch (HRW). These organisations are working together to advocate for access to palliative care as a human right.
The Prague Charter states that governments should:
- develop health policies that address the needs of patients with life-limiting or terminal illnesses
- ensure access to essential medicines, including controlled medications, to all who need them
- ensure that health-care workers receive adequate training on palliative care and pain management at undergraduate and subsequent levels
- ensure the integration palliative care into health-care systems at all levels