In 2011, the Quality Hospice Palliative Care Coalition of Ontario, for which HPCO is the Secretariat, in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care and the Local Health Integration Networks brought health service providers together to set forth a new vision and a new plan for palliative care in Ontario. The result was the publication of Advancing High Quality, High Value Palliative Care: A Declaration of Partnership and Commitment to Action, in December 2011.
Quick link to the 10 Year Review Report: 10 Year Review of the Declaration of Partnership 2021-12-01
Through the action commitments in the Declaration, the partners committed to providing better care for Ontarians at end of life while better managing health care resources over time. The Declaration sets out individual and collective commitments, common priorities, and actions to improve and optimize palliative care in Ontario. The goal is to improve the experience of the individuals and caregiver, the quality of care, and value the system delivers. The Declaration identifies the steps to provide equitable access to safe, comprehensive, and high-quality palliative care and support for individuals and their families.
On this 10th anniversary of the publication of the Declaration of Partners, the Coalition has reviewed the progress of the action commitments and identified gaps that remain to be closed. This report details progress, gaps, and recommendations for future action to further improve access to high quality hospice palliative care.
“Much progress has been made in the last 10 years to improve access, supports, and awareness, but with the rapidly growing demand for care, we need to move swiftly to create a more seamless quality patient and caregiver experience,” says Rick Firth, Co-Chair of the Coalition and President and CEO of Hospice Palliative Care Ontario. “Ontario’s health care system needs to shift to a single, cohesive delivery model that integrates care and support for adults and children with chronic disease at every stage, from diagnosis until death and through bereavement.”
The journey to the end of life is often a long one and can be filled with quality of living, with the early introduction of hospice palliative care. This philosophy of care can take place alongside curative measures and is focused on individual goals of care and quality of life, right to the end of life.
“Our goal is to improve the experience of the individual and caregiver, and the quality of care and the value the system delivers. Wherever quality hospice palliative care is practiced, this is the reality,” says Nancy Cooper, Coalition Co-Chair and Director of Quality and Performance for the Ontario Long-Term Care Association. “The Declaration identifies the next steps to provide equitable access to safe, comprehensive and high-quality palliative care and support for individuals and their families across the province. We are committed to implementing the recommended actions – both short and long-term.”
The Review summarizes advancements over the past 10 years, ongoing gaps, and recommendations for the next 10 years. The overarching vision of the Coalition is to ensure that “adults and children receive the holistic, proactive, timely and continuous care and support they need, through the entire spectrum of care both preceding and following death, to help them live as they choose, and optimize their quality of life, comfort, dignity and security.”
The top four goals for the next decade are:
Quality: To improve client/family, caregiver, and provider experience by delivering high quality, seamless care and support.
Population Health: To improve, maintain and support the quality of life and health of people with progressive life-limiting illnesses.
Sustainability: To improve system performance by delivering better care more cost-effectively and creating a continuously self-improving system.
Provider Well-being: To improve the work-life of providers.
The original Declaration of Partnership was developed and published in partnership with the Ministry of Health, and the 10-year Review coincides with a report to the Legislature from the Minister of Health, the Honourable Christine Elliott, on the development of a provincial palliative care framework, which was called for by the Ontario Compassionate Care Act (2020). The Coalition has submitted the 10-year Review to the Minister.
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