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Palliative care development in the Asia-Pacific region: an international survey from the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network (APHN)
  1. Takashi Yamaguchi1,2,
  2. Meiko Kuriya3,
  3. Tatsuya Morita4,
  4. Meera Agar5,
  5. Youn Seon Choi6,
  6. Cynthia Goh7,
  7. K B Lingegowda8,
  8. Richard Lim9,
  9. Rico K Y Liu10,
  10. Roderick MacLeod11,
  11. Rhodora Ocampo12,
  12. Shao-Yi Cheng13,
  13. Temsak Phungrassami14,
  14. Yen-Phi Nguyen15 and
  15. Satoru Tsuneto16
  1. 1Department of General Internal Medicine and Palliative Care Team, Teine Keijinkai Hospital, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
  2. 2Department of Palliative Medicine, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, Kobe, Japan
  3. 3Seirei Hospice, Seirei Mikatahara General Hospital, Hamamatsu, Japan
  4. 4Department of Palliative and Supportive Care, Seirei Mikatahara General Hospital, Hamamatsu, Japan
  5. 5Department of Palliative Care, Braeside Hospital, Sydney, Australia
  6. 6Department of Family Medicine, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, South Korea
  7. 7Department of Palliative Medicine, National Cancer Center Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
  8. 8Department of Palliative Medicine, Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
  9. 9Palliative Care Unit, Selayang Hospital, Selayang, Malaysia
  10. 10Department of Clinical Oncology, Queen Mary Hospital, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
  11. 11Hammond Care and Northern Clinical School, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
  12. 12Madre de Amor Hospice Foundation Inc., Los Banos, Philippines
  13. 13Department of Family Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
  14. 14Division of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Thailand
  15. 15Department of Palliative Care and Pain Management, National Cancer Hospital, Ha Noi, Vietnam
  16. 16Department of Palliative Medicine, Osaka University, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka, Japan
  1. Correspondence to Dr Takashi Yamaguchi, Department of General Internal Medicine, Teine Keijinkai Hospital, 12-1-40, Maeda 1jyo, Sapporo, Hokkaido 006-8111, Japan; ikagoro{at}pop06.odn.ne.jp

Abstract

Background Although palliative care is an important public healthcare issue worldwide, the current situation in the Asia-Pacific region has not been systematically evaluated.

Objectives This survey aimed to clarify the current status of palliative care in the Asia-Pacific region.

Methods Questionnaires were sent to a representative physician of each member country/region of the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network (APHN). The questionnaire examined palliative care service provision, information regarding physician certification in palliative care, the availability of essential drugs for palliative care listed by the International Association for Hospice and Palliative Care (IAHPC) and the regulation of opioid-prescribing practice.

Results Of the 14 member countries/regions of the APHN, 12 (86%) responded. Some form of specialist palliative care services had developed in all the responding countries/regions. Eight member countries/regions had physician certifications for palliative care. Most essential drugs for palliative care listed by the IAHPC were available, whereas hydromorphone, oxycodone and transmucosal fentanyl were unavailable in most countries/regions. Six member countries/regions required permission to prescribe and receive opioids.

Conclusions The development of palliative care is in different stages across the surveyed countries/regions in the Asia-Pacific region. Data from this survey can be used as baseline data for monitoring the development of palliative care in this region.

  • palliative care
  • Asia-Pacific
  • resource
  • essential drugs
  • opioid regulation

https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjspcare-2013-000588

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    Footnotes

    • Contributors TY participated in the conception and design of the study, data analysis and interpretation and drafting of the article. MK and ST participated in the conception and design of the study, coordinating data acquisition and providing critical revisions and additions of important intellectual content. TM, MA, YSC, CG, KBL, RL, RKYL, RM, RO, S-YC, TP and Y-PN participated in the conception and design, data acquisition and provided critical revisions and additions of important intellectual content. All authors approved the final version of the article.

    • Funding This study was supported by a Grant-in-Aid from the Japan Hospice Palliative Care Foundation.

    • Competing interests None.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.