Mike Hedges MS supports World Hospice Day.  

October 2022

Mike Hedges MS supports World Hospice Day.

World Hospice and Palliative Care Day (WHPCD) is a unified day of action to celebrate and support hospice and palliative care around the world every second Saturday in October. To mark WHPCD 2022, thousands of people around the world will be coming together on the 8^th of October 2022 to celebrate, but most importantly to speak out about their lived experiences in grief, loss, and bereavement.

Local Mike Hedges MS will be working together with hospices, palliative care facilities, and people living with palliative care needs to amplify the WHPCD theme, “Healing Hearts and Communities.”

The experience of grief and the need to heal unite people globally. Millions of families and caregivers are grieving the death of family and friends while experiencing social isolation and in some place’s property destruction. This has been caused by the effects wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic and conflicts around the world.

WHPCD 2022 will be a day where communities, institutions, and healthcare providers, unite and raise their voices to advocate for palliative care policies and programs that support the grief and bereavement needs of patients and families. Events will be held across the world to address the needs of bereaved people and ask governments and policy makers to develop and implement national plans to provide for and fund the diverse needs of the bereaved.

Local Swansea East Senedd Member said… ‘In Swansea, events will be taking place to promote palliative care, speak out and share compelling stories. I sit on the Cross Party Group on Palliative Care at the Senedd and have heard many stories of how the Hospice Movement makes a tremendous difference to  people as they near the end of their lives, and of the support given to families going through this situation.

Hospice rely on a large amount of voluntary funding and if you see any hospice fund raising events, please make an effort to make a donation, no matter how small – it will still make a big difference to an individual or family who needs support.’

According to the Global Atlas of Palliative Care, over 56.8 million people are estimated to require palliative care every year including 31.1 million prior to and 25.7 million near the end of life. The majority (67%) are adults over 50 years old and at least 7% are children. The majority (54%) are non-decedents who need palliative care prior to their last year of life. The burden of severe illness and health related suffering, and the corresponding need for palliative care, are immense. Yet palliative care is still not accessible to most people in need, especially in low and middle-income countries.

-Ends-

Notes for editors:

What is World Hospice and Palliative Care Day?

World Day is a unified day of action to celebrate and support hospice and palliative care around the world.

For more resources and information on palliative care globally, visit: (link leads to the website WHPCD resources 2022). For general media enquiries, please contact Howard Kinyua the Communications Manager at the WHPCA.

Who are the Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance?

The Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance is a global action network focusing exclusively on hospice and palliative care development worldwide. With over 3 organisational members in over 100 countries, we provide a global voice with a vision to accelerate universal access to quality palliative care.  For more information visit www.thewhpca.org Twitter: @whpca / Facebook: @thewpc and  YouTube

Why do we need WHPCD?

There are still far too many people that are unable to access this essential service, especially in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). We cannot achieve universal health coverage without palliative care, which is also a key component of the right to health and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal for good health and well-being.

NB: The WHPCA is asking all editors not to use the term ‘hospice’ as a standalone word, as it merely reinforces perceptions that the palliative care is only delivered in an in-patient, or building. We are working to spread the word that a hospice goes hand in hand with palliative care that can be delivered in any setting, home, informal settlement, hospital or care/nursing home.