FRESNO – UCSF Fresno and Hinds Hospice are presenting a two-day educational opportunity for healthcare professionals interested in serving in developing countries. The conference, “Hospice and Palliative Care in Developing Countries,” takes place today, Tuesday, Aug. 26 from 7:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. and tomorrow, Wednesday, Aug. 27 from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the UCSF Fresno Center for Medical Education and Research, located at 155 N. Fresno Street in Fresno.
Generally speaking, palliative care focuses on pain management and reducing the severity of disease symptoms. Aggressive treatment may still be an option for patients. Hospice, on the other hand, typically deals with pain management in patients who have a terminal diagnosis and curative medicine is not part of the treatment.
Conference participants will gain an understanding of World Health Organization pain management protocol. They will learn the importance of integrating cultural factors into healthcare delivery, including an overview of how different cultures view death and dying as well as identify factors influencing the provision of health care along with many other aspects of adapting hospice and palliative care in developing countries.
Information regarding volunteer opportunities also will be available.
“There are healthcare professionals who desire to serve in developing countries,” said Nancy Hinds, RN, founder of Hinds Hospice and leader of the event planning committee. “This conference will answer their questions and give a realistic look at medicine and palliative care as practiced in rural and urban settings.”
Speakers include:
- Judith Hills, MD, president of Hospice Africa – USA
- Eric Krakauer, MD, PhD, instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School
- Bjorn Nilson, MD, MPH, FAAP, clinical professor at UCSF Fresno and global pediatric AIDS specialist
- Carla Simmons, MD, medical director of the Medical Missionaries of Mary Mobile HIV-AIDS service at Masaka, Uganda
- Pakisa Tshimika, MPH, administrator of public health, Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Russ Zakarian, PharmD, assistant clinical professor at UCSF
Conference participants will receive continuing medical education credit. Steven Stoltz, MD, FACP, associate clinical professor at UCSF Fresno, is the activity director.
According to the Doctors without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) Web site, thanks to that organization, every year thousands of doctors, nurses and administrative and logistical support staff from around the world ensure that life-saving medical assistance is available to people in more than 60 countries who otherwise would be denied the most basic health care.
