There comes a time in our lives when many of us will care for someone with a terminal illness. Whether you are a carer or a health professional, every person’s needs are unique and caring for them can be, at times, difficult emotionally and physically for everyone involved.

In order to help support and benefit the ageing, The Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association (AHHA) have re-launched their Palliative Care Online Training Portal aimed at helping aged and community care workers, carers, volunteers, family members and health professionals who provide palliative care to people in the community.

Funded by the Department of Health, this palliative care educational resource is designed to help apply the palliAGED guidelines and evidence base to your caring role.

The success of the portal from the initial development in 2013, saw more than 20,000 users from across the palliative care sector and community registered to complete the training.  With the development of two new modules, 7,193 people in 2016 completed the training and AHHA aims to have 5,000 registered participants by the end of 2017.

The online training program consists of six modules designed to support and increase the knowledge, skills and values that are required to communicate and contribute to the care of clients in the community who have a life limiting illness or are approaching the final stages of the normal ageing process.

The training will help participants to:

Reflect on the needs of people and their families as they approach the end of life

Build screening and assessment skills

Develop confidence in having end-of-life conversations, especially around advance care planning

Invest in self-care and build resilience

Connect to a wider network of experts who can support and assist you

Extend knowledge of assessing, treating and managing pain

Develop skills in recognising and managing the deteriorating client

A certificate of completion will be provided to participants after completing each module, including the learning objectives and duration of the activity. Health professionals may self-record their participation and completion of assessments as part of their individual CPD learning records.

The portal also contains a Resource Library providing access to relevant guidelines, documents, websites and other resources.

Past users of the portal describe the positive impact the training has had on their professional and personal development:

“I am more confident with my approach to palliative care and getting my view across to my peers. I am now confident in providing the best care I can to my palliative patients.”

“The training has enhanced and was in tune with my attitudes and beliefs and have given me the material and guidelines to work with more confidence with palliative patients and families.”

“The training (as a nursing student) has given me an excellent introduction and insight into the cause and effect, holistic care of a palliative patient and those surrounding them, the carers. “

“I originally thought it was only about pain relief, now I know it is the complete gamut of all aspects of life and death and the process of getting to the end with grace, dignity, and respect and pain control.”

Register for the training here