On October 11, the world will commemorate World Hospice and Palliative Care Day under the theme “Hospice and Palliative Care: A human right.” The theme seeks to highlight that without access to the care they need, people affected by life limiting illnesses suffer unacceptable levels of distress that amount to a violation of their rights.

In most parts of southern Africa today, there are many people suffering unacceptable levels of distress. People living with HIV are today not accessing much of the care they need, during times of illness (UNAIDS, 2008). In instances where they succumb to cancers and other serious health conditions such as Tuberculosis, they end up incapacitated and fail to get up and about. Because the region is still resource-poor, health systems are facing numerous challenges, which have a direct impact on how they cope with those that require healthcare services. In most cases, people living with HIV are being taken care of by their families. The concept of home-based care, which countries, such as Zimbabwe have adopted, has transferred most of the burden of care from health institutions into the communities.

It is important to highlight what World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is about during this time of the year. It is a unified day of action to celebrate and support hospice and palliative care around the world. A network of hospice and palliative care national and regional organizations that support the development of hospice and palliative care worldwide (www.worldday.org/partners.asp) organize the day, which aims to raise awareness and understanding of the needs- medical, social, practical,- of people living with a life-limiting illness and their families, to raise funds to support and develop hospice and palliative care services around the world.

Key Issues:

• As World Hospice and Palliative Care Day approaches, the media should investigate whether the home based care concept is working. Everyone living with a life limiting illness has the right to quality hospice and palliative care to enable them to live with dignity and without undue pain and stress.
• If people in your country are not accessing Anti-retroviral treatment as and when they require it, can it be said that their right to quality hospice and palliative care has been observed? If they are failing to live a productive and full life because they cannot access healthcare service, or even pain medication, is their right to quality hospice and care being realised? If they cannot get tested for TB and get TB treatment when they need it, what does this mean about the readiness of your country to embrace palliative care?
• World Hospice and Palliative Care Day is still not as popular as it should be. Raise awareness about it and take advantage of it to raise issues around improving health systems in southern Africa. It is important for the media to emphasise that one’s life does not have to end because they can no longer walk or because they have cancer. With wheelchairs and treatment in place, such people can still have normal lives. 
• The media needs to begin to question, in its coverage of HIV and AIDS and TB, policy makers, about what they are doing to ensure that people living with life-limiting illnesses, including HIV, are living with dignity and without undue pain or distress.
• It is important also to speak to people living amidst such pain and distress and make sure their voices are heard. This can be a lobbying tool to civil society, governments, world leaders and the business community to do something to improve palliative care systems. 

Sources:

www.nhpco.org/142/pages/index.cfm
www.worldday.org
www.worlday.org/partners.asp
www.unaids.org
http://pmj.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/12/5/317
www.unaids.org
A Literature Review (Providing ART in southern Africa, 2004)