On May 13-14 2016, the Peruvian Societies of Palliative Care (Sociedad Peruana de Cuidados Paliativos, SPCP) and Neurology (Sociedad Peruana de Neurologia, SPN) held their first two-day conference and workshop on “Palliative Care and Neurology” in Lima, Peru. In a country without a palliative care training program, and where the development of palliative care is limited, 90 Peruvian neurologists, neurointensivists, geriatricians, palliative care specialists, nurses, as well as some patients from the Peruvian national neurological institute (Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Neurologicas, INCN) gathered to learn about palliative care principles and the ethical considerations and challenges of neurological illness and disability. Dr. Claire Creutzfeldt, Assistant Professor of Neurology at the University of Washington, was gave an overview of neuro-palliative care and run a VitalTalk communication workshop, providing a framework for approaching discussions regarding serious illnesses.
Invited political and healthcare leaders included: Pilar Mazzetti Soler, MD PhD, neurologist, former Peruvian Minister of Health and president of the SPN and INCN; Lilian Hidalgo, MD, vice president of the SPCP; Maria Chumbe MD, neurointensivist at the INCN; and Claire Creutzfeldt, MD. These leaders participated in a roundtable discussion entitled “Visions for Neuropalliative Care in Peru” – fielding questions and debating the next steps to facilitate the growth of palliative care. Specific aspirational goals emerging from the conference included: (1) incorporation of palliative care specialists into clinical neurology ward teams; (2) development of home health and hospice programs; and (3) integration of a palliative care curriculum for medical school and residency programs.
The conference was co-organized by NIH Fogarty Global Health Scholar Anastasia Vishnevetsky, MDc from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and Peruvian Geriatrician Carla Zapata del Mar, MD. The Peruvian Society of Neurology and the Peruvian Society of Palliative Care co-hosted the event. Additional support was provided by the NIH Fogarty Interdisciplinary Cerebrovascular Diseases Training Program in South America (ICTuS) Grant (5D43TW009137, awarded to Drs. Joseph Zunt, Hugo Garcia and David Tirschwell) and the NIH Fogarty Global Health Fellows Program (R25TW009345, awarded to Drs. Joseph Zunt, Chandy John, Joseph Kolars and Vivek Nerurkar). Special thanks to Drs. Juan Luis Cam, Mario Cornejo-Olivas and Miriam Cuba for their help and support with the conference organization.