Adelaide to host international palliative care conference

Back to PCA News

Adelaide to host international palliative care conference

The palliative care community came out to support PCA's bid to host the 17th APHN Conference in Adelaide.

Palliative Care Australia and Palliative Care South Australia are excited to announce that Adelaide will host the 17th Asia Pacific Hospice Conference.

“It’s great recognition for the Australian palliative care sector that we have been chosen to host this prestigious conference,” says Gretchen Irvine, National Partnerships and Events Manager, Palliative Care Australia (PCA).

“We are delighted to be working with the Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Network (APHN) to deliver this event in 2027.

“It promises to be a great opportunity to share knowledge, passion, and cultures, and advance the global conversation around better access to quality of life at the end of life through palliative care.”

Winning the very competitive bid process was the result of a partnership between Palliative Care Australia, Palliative Care South Australia, Adelaide Convention Centre, and Business Events Adelaide.

“Adelaide is a multicultural city well placed to make delegates from APHN’s 27 different regions feel at home, including China, India, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, and Philippines,” says Shyla Mills, CEO, Palliative Care South Australia.

“Adelaide has nurtured some the world’s best-known names in palliative care including Professor Ian Maddocks, Dr Naveen Salins, Professor David Currow, Professor Meera Agar, and Professor Ghauri Aggarwal.

“As a community of clinicians and volunteers we have so much to share with and learn from our colleagues across Asia and the Pacific.”

The event will take place in April 2027 at the Adelaide Convention Centre and will combine with the Oceanic Palliative Care Conference – making it one of the biggest events for the sector globally.

“Adelaide is a great destination for international events, and it’s wonderful to see APHN place their trust in our city as host destination for their 2027 conference,” says Sarah Goldfinch, General Manager, Adelaide Convention Centre.

“Delegates will be warmly welcomed to Adelaide, with opportunity to discover and experience everything that makes South Australia a great place to visit.

“To bring this conference to Adelaide is not only fantastic news for South Australia’s palliative care sector but also for the many local businesses and attractions that look after and rely on the visitor economy.”

The 2027 Asia Pacific Hospice Conference will build on other great events occurring over the next 12 months including the Hospice New Zealand Conference in Wellington this November followed in 2025 by the 16th Asia Pacific Hospice Palliative Care Conference in Malaysia, and the Oceanic Palliative Care Conference in Brisbane.

“This is the community we’ll be inviting to Adelaide in two years’ time. Whenever these passionate people get together good things happen for the benefit of some of our most vulnerable people and families,” Ms Irvine says.

“Thank you to our partners in this successful bid, the way we worked together mirrors the approach of palliative care in general – holistic, person centred, driven by skill and passion.”

Further details will be announced in the future.