To ask the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety for his assessment of the impact of the inaugural all-island Palliative Care Week; and how he intends to use the momentum to support the provision of Palliative Care in Northern Ireland.

The inaugural all-island Palliative Care Week was held between 6 and 11 October 2014 and led by the All Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care. My Department, together with the Health and Social Care Board (HSCB), the Public Health Agency (PHA) and the Health and Social Care Trusts supported Palliative Care Week by contributing to the content and message of the “Making the Most of Life” media campaign and through facilitating the co-ordination of publicity and information events in Northern Ireland.

The momentum gained from Palliative Care Week will support the on-going work being taken forward by the HSCB and PHA as part of the implementation of my Department’s regional strategy for palliative and end of life care for adults: “Living Matters: Dying Matters”. It will also support the Transforming Your Palliative and End of Life Care initiative currently being taken forward by the HSCB and PHA in conjunction with Marie Curie. This initiative has identified eight work-streams which seek to improve how palliative and end of life care is delivered, including support for patients and carers, enhanced access to care services at home and identification and planning for people with palliative care needs.

The “Living Matters:Dying Matters” Strategy, includes a recommendation to promote and encourage open discussion about palliative and end of life care through media, education and awareness programmes aimed at the public and the health and social care sector. A survey carried out directly after the campaign found that 26% of a weighted population sample of adults in Northern Ireland identified raised awareness around Palliative Care Week, with 63% of those aware of the campaign reporting that it had made a positive difference to their understanding of palliative care.

During Palliative Care Week, the All Ireland Institute of Hospice and Palliative Care, supported by the PHA in Northern Ireland and the Health Service Executive in the Republic of Ireland, published the results of the first phase of the ‘Let’s Talk About …’ survey, which sought to capture the experiences of patients at end of life and their carers. The second phase of the survey, aimed at assessing changes in attitudes towards palliative care, was also launched during the campaign week. The second phase findings will be available in October 2015.