Overview This abstract provides an overview of the experience and challenges encountered in sharing palliative nursing knowledge in East Asia. As palliative care gains recognition globally, an increasing number of healthcare workers value the importance of implementing palliative care in their practices to improve the quality of life for people with advanced illnesses in East Asia.

Background With the increasing need for palliative care in China, Yunnan Province saw the need to raise the standards of palliative care delivery in their practices. Therefore, a professional training program supported by Kunming Health and Family Planning Commission and medical institutions in China and Singapore was commenced. The participants selected were doctors, nurses, and medical social workers from palliative, oncological, and geriatric departments in Yunnan and other provinces.

Purpose The training was targeted at building the capability of healthcare professionals to provide end-of-life care services in Yunnan, which then improves the quality of care for terminally ill patients in this province.

Methods A 3-year project, ‘Enhancing Palliative Care in Yunnan, China’, was initiated by Singapore International Foundation (SIF), First People’s Hospital of Yunnan New Kunhua Hospital (New Kunhua), and Yunnan Health and Development Research Association (YHDRA) in January 2019, and extended to 4 years due to COVID-19. There was a total of 60 regular trainees in this project.

The training sessions were held in person in Yunnan in 2019 and subsequently, virtually due to COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021, concluding with a virtual Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) conducted in 2022 as a summative assessment of the participants. The training took the form of lectures, case studies, skill practices, group discussions, and role-playing. Pre-reading materials were provided before the training days. Two virtual training sessions were conducted over 2 half days.

Challenges The project faced several obstacles, including language barriers, limited prior exposure to palliative care concepts among participants, and logistical constraints, especially during COVID-19. These issues required adaptive teaching strategies and additional resources to ensure effective learning to take place among participants.

Results This project successfully promoted professional and technical exchange between Singapore and China in the field of palliative care and improved the service skills and quality of palliative care in Yunnan. The trainees found the training methods were flexible and diverse. The report indicated the highest score for ‘Training skills and methods of teachers’. As a result, the trainees also made use of lectures, case studies, and group discussions to enhance palliative care knowledge at their institutions.

Conclusions The ‘Enhancing Palliative Care in Yunnan, China’ project was completed successfully despite COVID-19 because of all the collaborative efforts and contributions among different organizations. The project has achieved its goals of promoting palliative care in Yunnan, and raising the capacity of the healthcare professionals to care for people with advanced illnesses.

Appropriate and relevant teaching strategies play important roles in disseminating knowledge among participants so that they are equipped and empowered with confidence to implement palliative care principles in the workplace.